Some vendors (Overdrive, Alexander Street Press, Naxos) have begun to offer downloadable e-music and/or e-video. Some libraries have taken up the mantle and are successfully offering these services to their users. Most libraries are being cautious due to content and user expectation challenges.

The content in the e-video offerings is largely documentary and educational in content. This may have appeal for school libraries, but most library users are looking for popular movies and those simply aren’t available yet.

The content in the e-music offerings is largely classical music with some world music, not the popular music that is so popular in the consumer download market. Furthermore, Alexander Street and Naxos are streaming services and OverDrive downloads are only available temporarily without the ability to burn to CD. Alexander Street does allow dowloads if the user pays extra and libraries can disable this option. While videos and books are more one-time use items, music is expected to be perpetually available, and that isn’t the case with downloaded files that self-encrypt after the due date. Schools and universities may be attracted to e-music as part of a larger music educational resource. Naxos offers downloadable sheetmusic to go with the sound files. And Alexander Street offers full text music reference sources to accompany their streaming sound files.

E-software may be the next major format—users will be able to go to the library’s website and download temporary licenses for software: games, tax preparation software, office and productivity software, etc. OVerDrive announced their launch of e-games and interactive software at ALA MidWinter 2007. Naysayers feel that, like music, users expect software to be available always, not for a 3-week check-out period. However, some users may only need the product for a short time or may use the library’s copy as a way to preview the software before buying it themselves.

Until a critical mass of popular bestselling titles are available for the video, music, and software collections, most libraries will not move into this realm. This is what we saw happen with text e-books and audio e-books, and we expect the same will hold true for these new downloadable media as well.