The state of the country's public libraries: Higher demand, tighter funding and much more connected. "The Condition of U.S. Public Libraries, Trends 1999-2009," compiled by the American Library Association and released Thursday, shows a steady upward trend of visits, from 1.23 billion in 2002 ...

France agreed Tuesday to work with Google in a programme to digitally scan French library books but insisted it would not surrender legal control of its cultural heritage to the US Internet giant. Culture Minister Frederic Mitterrand said he would discuss sharing digital files of works from France in return for items from Google's online library, while also pressing ...

France's culture minister on Tuesday unveiled a plan for adapting the country's literary patrimony to the digital age by developing what he hopes will prove a uniquely Gallic competitor to Google Books. Frederic Mitterrand didn't rule out cooperating with the ubiquitous, U.S.-based ...