The Internet Archive, which records and preserves all information on the Internet, opened the National Emergency Library service, which allows you to read 1.4 million digital books for free from March 24th. Some of the 1.4 million books do not have copyright holders, but publications such as the Harry Potter series are also included. Users can freely borrow up to 10 books at a time.
If you go here, you can specify the date and category on the left side of the screen, or the facility where the book is held, author, and language. The period can be specified from 1925 to 2019. For your reference, if you check Korean, 383 books will appear. Also, if you are not logged in, you can only preview, and if you log in, you can read the entire book online for free.
The Internet Archive has been running a digital scan copy loan program for real books for the past 10 years. However, the number of books that readers borrow at one time here is limited and must be returned after a certain period of time. However, the National Emergency Library has 1.4 million books on the waiting list and can freely borrow up to 10 books at a time. After the declaration of emergency, in the United States, people who cannot freely go out are deprived of learning opportunities. This is an attempt to help people who can’t physically go to the library by reading without being exposed to the dangers around them.
Although the legal basis for books in Digital Libraries is not clear, it is considered fair use, one of the grounds for protest against alleged copyright infringement. There is no mention of the copyright part of the National Emergency Library Seo Bi-seung. The Internet Archives plans to continue this action until June 30, but is willing to continue until the US declaration of emergency is lifted. Related information can be found here .