Student eBook Use Accelerating in Schools

Thousands of K-12 Schools Engage Students on Tablets, Smartphones and eReaders


SAN DIEGO, CA--(Marketwire - Jun 25, 2012) - International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) Conference -- Schools across the United States and around the world are reaping the benefits of lending eBooks and audiobooks, with usage taking off in school libraries, media centers and classrooms. OverDrive, a leading supplier of school eBooks and audiobooks, is supporting reading programs and literacy campaigns in more than 3,000 schools for millions of students worldwide. OverDrive will showcase its School Download Library service at the International Society for Technology in Education Conference (Booth 5831) in San Diego, Calif., June 25-27.

OverDrive supplements existing school library collections with digital content available to students anytime, anywhere, on all major eReading devices, computers, tablets and smartphones, including Kindle (U.S. only). The OverDrive children's and young adult catalog encompasses more than 300,000 popular and educational titles -- including the Harry Potter series -- from publishers like Scholastic Audio, Lerner Publishing Group, Capstone Press, ABDO, Disney Digital Books, Encyclopedia Britannica, Crabtree Publishing, Saddleback Educational Publishing, HarperCollins, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Random House. Currently, OverDrive supplies schools in 41 states and 16 countries.

OverDrive-supplied eBooks and audiobooks help educators reach students on their preferred reading platforms, engaging young readers and contributing to improvements in literacy. And with the proliferation of one-to-one laptop and tablet programs, OverDrive enables schools to create custom collections of popular and educational eBooks and lend to students in a publisher-supported model.

Building on the success of its eBook platform also in place at more than 18,000 public libraries, OverDrive's Next Generation service enhancements will extend the value for schools during the 2012-'13 school year. The browser-based eReading experience OverDrive Read™ will give readers instant access to eBooks, both online and offline. Similarly, Streaming Audiobooks will enable on-demand access via the OverDrive Media Console apps for Windows®, Mac®, iPhone®, iPad®, Android™, Windows® Phone and BlackBerry®. School librarians will find powerful tools in the all-new Content Reserve collection development portal, which will integrate Lexile scores, Renaissance Learning's Accelerated Reader program, and the Fountas & Pinnell assessment system.

OverDrive provides digital distribution services for more than 18,000 libraries, schools and retailers worldwide with support for Windows®, Mac®, iPhone®, iPad®, Kindle® (U.S. only), Sony® Reader, NOOK™, Android™, Windows® Phone and BlackBerry®. To find a library near you, visit search.overdrive.com.

About OverDrive
OverDrive is a leading multichannel digital distributor of eBooks, digital audiobooks, music and video. We deliver secure management, DRM protection and download fulfillment services for hundreds of publishers and thousands of libraries, schools and retailers, serving millions of end users. Our industry-leading digital catalog encompasses more than 800,000 titles, including J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. OverDrive has been named to the EContent 100 as a company that matters most in the digital content industry. Founded in 1986, OverDrive is based in Cleveland, OH. www.overdrive.com

Contact Information:

Contact:
David Burleigh
OverDrive, Inc.
216-573-6886 x218