CES 2011: Video Interview with OverDrive’s David Burleigh

In What's the Buzz by Hannah Johnson

By Hannah Johnson

“It’s not so much about the content here . . . it’s more about manufacturers, retailers, traditional booksellers, non-traditional booksellers, anyone who wants to get into the bookselling business,” said David Burleigh, Director of Marketing for OverDrive, of the Consumer Electronics Show.

However, media companies played a bigger role at CES this year. In fact, Burleigh said, OverDrive spoke to a number CES exhibitors from the technology industry about building e-book stores, integrating apps and providing solutions for getting e-books onto various devices.

Burleigh said he didn’t see a clear winner between tablets and dedicated e-reading devices in the near future. “We’re seeing a lot of tablets at CES this year. There were a lot of e-readers last year, and I think there’ll be a few [e-readers] that make it.” In fact, the explosion of devices over the last year has increased awareness about the availability of e-books from libraries. Burleigh told us that circulation at all of OverDrive’s libraries increased over the holidays.

About the Author

Hannah Johnson

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Hannah Johnson is the publisher of international book industry magazine Publishing Perspectives, which provides daily information and news about book markets around the world. In addition to building partnerships with international cultural and trade organizations, she works with the Frankfurt Book Fair to organize and support a number of its overseas initiatives. Hannah has also worked as the managing editor for an online media company, The Hooch Life, focused on craft distillers and cocktail experts. Prior to that, she worked as a project manager for the Frankfurt Book Fair’s New York office, managing various business and marketing activities.