ebrary Launches OnDemand(TM) Platform for Cost-Effectively Creating and Distributing Dynamic Databases of PDF Content Online.

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- The same platform that is trusted by more than 700 libraries to distribute online books from more than 200 publishers to over 4 million patrons worldwide is now available as a hosted application service. ebrary (www.ebrary.com), a leading information services and technology provider, today announced the availability of the ebrary OnDemand(TM) platform, which enables libraries and publishers to affordably and efficiently distribute their own PDF content online. ebrary OnDemand is powered by the ebrary Dynamic Content Platform (DCP)(TM) and features all of its rich functionality including the ebrary Reader(TM) software, which optimizes online viewing by delivering documents to an end-user's desktop page-by-page, and InfoTools(TM) software, which integrates existing content databases and information on the web.

For libraries, OnDemand provides an easy and cost-effective way to archive, manage, and share digital content such as theses and dissertations, reports, historical books, manuscripts, or other documents in PDF that have been digitized by the library. OnDemand enables libraries to build PDF databases that can be accessed over the Internet without having to hire additional IT staff to implement and maintain the system. For publishers, OnDemand provides a hosted software platform that is integrated with their existing website to efficiently market their digital content, providing "look inside the book" and "electronic samples" features. And, publishers can sell their digital content online under a variety of different business models, including subscription or perpetual access collections.

"The ebrary OnDemand platform has enabled us to quickly and cost-effectively create dynamic archives from our own content. We specifically like how our SULAIR website integrates with ebrary's InfoTools, our OPAC, and ebrary's databases," said Michael Keller, University Librarian and Director of Academic Information Resources for Stanford University. "It is easy for our staff to upload PDFs, though ebrary implements and maintains the databases of PDFs for us."

"ebrary is extremely excited to offer our technology platform to organizations that need to distribute their own content online," said David Bass, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for ebrary. "We believe our platform can help address both the needs of libraries, who need a cost effective way to archive and disseminate important information they are digitizing, and publishers that need to market and sell their titles online."

Key features and benefits of OnDemand include the following:

    --  Easy PDF submission - ebrary supports multiple file types
        including; PDF normal, web PDF, and rasterized PDF.

    --  Ingrates with a customer's creation and dissemination
        workflow.

    --  Simple meta-tagging - There is no need for complex XML
        development or meta-tagging of PDF files to let end-users
        search and index key words, phrases, and images within a file.

    --  Multiple search options - OnDemand features its own search
        engine or can be integrated with a customer's search engine.
        OnDemand supports full-text, keyword, Boolean, and proximity
        search.

    --  InfoTools - This customizable software application integrates
        existing content databases, search engines, and information on
        the web. The InfoTools menu is activated by selecting any word
        or phrase of interest in any document submitted into the
        OnDemand system.

    --  Reporting Tools -OnDemand provides statistics about how each
        page of content is used while protecting end-user privacy.

    --  ebrary eXtend(TM) APIs - ebrary offers an application
        programming interface that allows customers to customize the
        look and feel of their OnDemand site and leverage existing
        end-user authentication mechanisms.

    --  The ebrary Reader - This unique software application delivers
        documents page-by-page, eliminating bandwidth or connectivity
        limitations. The ebrary Reader also provides the ability to:

        --  Highlight and take notes within a document

        --  Automatically save highlights, notes, and bookmarks on a
            Personal Bookshelf

        --  Copy and paste text into Word, HTML, or email application
            with an automatic bibliographical citation and a URL
            hyperlink back to the source.

About ebrary

ebrary(R) provides technology solutions and information services that students, employees, patrons, and staff need to be more productive, competitive, and knowledgeable.

The company has pioneered the Dynamic Content Platform (DCP), a hosted information delivery service that features a growing selection of more than 60,000 titles from more than 200 leading academic, STM, and professional publishers. ebrary license authoritative content such as full-text books, reports, maps, and other authoritative documents under both a simultaneous, multi-user subscription and perpetual access model.

All ebrary products feature the ebrary Reader(TM) software, which optimizes online viewing through the "real-time" conversion of PDF documents into ebrary's Exchange Data Format (EDF)(TM). EDF serves any PDF file, regardless of size, through any connected Internet browser, one page at a time, making the delivery fast and efficient for the viewer.

InfoTools(TM) software is an advanced set of software features within the ebrary Reader that provides much more powerful and efficient research capabilities than editorial-based linking or multiple search queries. By selecting words within a current document, end users can instantly link to relevant information from other EDF or PDF documents, digital databases, and resources on the Web.

Founded in 1999, ebrary is privately held and is headquartered in Palo Alto, CA.