According to a recent press release, Cambridge University Press has launched a new scanning initiative that will make 475 rare and out-of-print titles from the Cambridge Library Collection available for print-on-demand. Some of the titles in the collection are so valuable that they are no longer circulating and can only be viewed in the vault.
In an article from Inside Higher Ed, Erin Igoe, library sales and marketing manager for Cambridge University Press, commented on how they are increasing the accessibility of these rare books, “Some of these are titles that weren't available in the free domain. By making them available, we are creating a demand. Because they are scanned and available, people know they're out there.”
Cambridge University is one of several universities that have recently embarked on scanning and print-on-demand initiatives to make their rare books available to more customers. Other universities include: University of Michigan, Cornell University Library, and University of Pittsburgh Press. Cambridge University plans to expand their offering to include over 1,000 titles by the end of 2009.
