Libraries Connected report says e-books should be cheaper for libraries

Publishers should make e-books cheaper and more accessible to public libraries, according to a new report funded by Arts Council England. 

The document, from charity Libraries Connected, is the conclusion of a major project exploring new opportunities for libraries and publishers to boost reading and promote writers through increasing the affordability and availability of e-books to public libraries.

Digital lending has been offered by public libraries in the UK since 2008, facilitated by apps such as Libby and Borrowbox (from Overdrive and Bolinda respectively). The cost to libraries of buying them is significantly higher than print, however, and the dominance of a "one copy, one user" licensing model often results in long waiting lists. And despite steadily increasing demand, the overall selection of e-books offered by publishers to libraries remains relatively small.

Last year, Arts Council England awarded Libraries Connected – which represents public library services in England, Wales and Northern Ireland – around £50,000 to explore ways of overcoming these challenges, working collaboratively with publishers and trade bodies.

The charity worked with 16 publishers – including Canongate, Faber and Hachette, which has previously only offered limited e-book lending – and 28 library services to pilot a range of more flexible licences on a list of around 250 titles. The piloted licences included one that allowed simultaneous lending of the same title, giving libraries the opportunity to promote e-books through author talks and festivals – something usually prevented by the "one copy, once user" model.

Alongside the pilot, with a further £35,000 of Arts Council England investment, Libraries Connected commissioned consultancy Independent Mind to undertake market and audience research into library users’ e-book buying and borrowing habits with 23 of the participating library services.

Using four sources of data – demographic mapping of active e-book borrowers, baseline and follow-up surveys (with over 27,000 responses combined) and in-depth interviews – the research found that: 

• The report suggests that those who borrow e-books are more likely to buy e-books than those who do not and those who borrow more, buy more. The evidence showed that 28% of e-book borrowers come from lower-income households and just 7% of registered library users are e-book borrowers. 
• The report recognises the opportunities for publishers and libraries to work together more closely to grow reading habits, and calls on publishers to permanently offer a wider range of licensing models, to align e-book prices more closely with print book prices, to make a wider range of e-books available to libraries and to provide promotional materials to libraries more readily. 

Isobel Hunter, chief executive of Libraries Connected, said: "This important research shows the enormous potential of e-lending to promote reading and support reader development. By working collaboratively we can harness the reach and accessibility of e-books to attract new readers and engage audiences. The task now is to ensure the culture and practice of e-lending develops to make the most of these opportunities."

Luke Burton, director for libraries at Arts Council England, said: "With over 3,000 branches, public libraries are ideally placed to support the public demand for e-books which has grown steadily in recent years. The terms under which e-books can be lent, however, are different from physical books, which restrict their availability to library borrowers, and prevent libraries from holding strong, relevant, contemporary digital collections.”

Of the origins behind the report, Burton added: “We commissioned this pilot project to explore how changes to e-book licences might benefit readers and libraries, writers and publishers by opening up choice and access to bigger collections. We also invested in a consumer habit survey to understand any connectivity between borrowing and buying habits, which has suggested that greater lending can sit alongside more prolific purchasing. There are positive outcomes for all parties from the data and analysis in these two projects, and I welcome the opportunity to develop further collaboration between publishers and libraries to increase reading behaviours and opportunities."