- Public Domain: Works first published before January 1, 1923 with proper copyright notice entered the public domain no later than 75 years from the date copyright was first secured. Hence, all works whose copyrights were secured in the US before 1923 are not in the public domain, regardless of where they were published.
- Creative Commons License: Every license helps creators retain copyright while allowing others to copy, distribute, and make some uses of their work — at least non-commercially. Every Creative Commons license also ensures licensors get the credit for their work they deserve.
| eBook Provider | Copyright | # of Titles Offered | Content/ Genres | Ideal for public or academic | Equipment required to view |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Many books | Public Domain and Creative Commons | 26,021 | Fiction and Non-Fiction62 categories | Public or Academic | Android, BeBook, Blackberry, iPhone/iPod Touch, iPod, iRex, iLiad, Kindle, Nokia770/N800/N810, Nook, Palm, Pocket PC, PSP, Sony Reader, Symbian, Windows Mobile, Zaurus |
| Project Gutenberg | public domain books whose copyright has expried in the United States, and copyrighted books whose author gave Project Gutenberg Permission to Distribute them. | 30,000 | Children’s Bookshelf, Countries Bookshelf, Crime Bookshelf, Periodicals Bookshelf, Religion Bookshelf, Science Bookshelf, Wars (Those 7 Subcategories are further broken down in 77 categories) | Public | The Nook, Kindle, Sony Ereader, MP3 players, gaming systems, eBook Readers, mobile phones Qi00 format. |
| Digital Book Index | Use of this site is Free. Where a price appears in the listing, this is the charge for the title from the publisher or distributor. No billing is incurred through this site. Payments will be made to the publisher when you transfer to the download site. | 148,000 total eBooks 120,000 of them are free | Reference Literature and Languages History Social Sciences Medicine Health Math Philosophy Religion Law The Arts Children’s eBooks other. . . | Academic or Public | Adobe Acrobat, Adobe eBook, MS Reader, AportisDoc, Reader for the Palm and Pocket PC, Palm Reader, DeJa View Reader (LizardTech). |
| Additional Misc Links | archive.org openlibrary.org epubbooks.com free-ebooks.net Amazon Free eBooks B&N Free eBooks Digital Public Library of America | ||||
| IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library http://imslp.org/ wiki/Main_Page, | Public Domain | 65,089 | Downloadable Sheet Music | Public |