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This theoretical paper aims to draw on existing literature to examine the case for libraries to play a key role in the democratization of Oman. This paper is intended to provide foundation for further empirical research to develop a proposed future strategy for Oman’s library sector that will help facilitate the future political and economic transition of the Sultanate.

This is a theoretical study that draws on existing literature to examine the case for libraries to play a key role in the democratization of Oman.

There are four main ways in which public libraries support democratization are identified and discussed: providing access to information, ensuring inclusivity of knowledge, forming a community hub for interaction and dialogue and promoting social inclusion through internet access.

As Oman undergoes political and economic transition, this study and the follow-on empirical research will be highly significant in ensuring that the expansion of democratic processes in Oman proceeds peacefully and that the Sultanate provides a best practice model for Islamic democracy within the Gulf Cooperation Council region and globally.

This paper aims to extend the use of the technology acceptance model (TAM) to faculty acceptance of e-books at Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) in the Sultanate of Oman. Electronic books (e-books) are becoming increasingly important in society in general and among academic faculty, concomitant with the growth of portable electronic devices that facilitate the reading of e-books.

The effects of language and personal characteristics (gender, age and field of study) in relation to perceived usefulness, perceived ease-of-use and usage of e-books for academic work among respondents are examined using data derived from a survey of 332 faculty members at SQU.

Findings were that participants who perceived that electronic books were easier to use also tended to be those who used them more; younger male faculty whose first language was Arabic tended to have higher levels of usage than females, older faculty or faculty whose first language was not Arabic. Faculty in the social sciences and the life and health sciences tended to have lower levels of usage behaviour than those in the arts and humanities, business or law or physical sciences or engineering.

Implications are that e-book acceptance among faculty at SQU is similar to that of faculty in Western universities and that the TAM is a relatively good predictor of e-book usage regardless of geographical location.

The value of the present study is that identification of factors affecting scholars’ e-book usage behaviours may provide library managers with a better understanding of the way in which they can support faculty. Further, by focusing on e-book adoption by faculty in a non-Western country, results of the research help to fill a gap on an under-researched population.