Libraries struggle to afford the demand for e-books, seek new state laws in fight with publishers

HARTFORD, Conn.– Whenever bestselling author Robin Cook releases a new medical thriller, the head of the public library in West Haven, Connecticut, knows the demand for digital copies will be high. So will the price.

Like many libraries, West Haven is struggling with the rising costs of ebooks and audiobooks. Digital titles often have a price tag that is much higher than what consumers pay. While a hardcover copy of Cook’s latest novel costs the library $18, it costs $55 to lease a digital copy — a price that is non-negotiable with publishers.

And for that, the ebook expires after a limited time, usually after one or two years, or after 26 checkouts, whichever comes first. Although consumer-bought e-books can last forever, libraries must renew their leased e-materials.

The modestly funded West Haven Library has spent more than $12,000 over the past three years leasing just 276 additional digital titles, in addition to what patrons can access through a consortium of public libraries. Eighty-four of those books are no longer available. If that same amount had been spent on paper books, it would have been approximately 800 titles.

“Imagine if taxpayer dollars were used to build a playground at a school, only to be torn down after two years of use,” said librarian Colleen Bailie at a recent public hearing.

However, publishers argue that the arrangement is fair as library ebook licenses allow countless customers to ‘borrow’ them and the cost per reader is much lower than the per reader rate.

Librarians in several states have pushed for legislation to rein in costs and restrictions on electronic materials, which have become increasingly popular since the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers are stuck on long waiting lists for audio and e-books, and digital offerings are limited.

This year, lawmakers in states like Connecticut, Massachusetts, Illinois, Hawaii and New Hampshire introduced bills to close the affordability gap. A bill was introduced in Virginia, but it was introduced in February.

They face strong opposition from the publishing industry, which claims the legislation undermines intellectual property values ​​and harms the publishing ecosystem.

“They do have a funding problem, but the answer is not to take it out of authors’ pockets and destroy creators’ rights and pass unconstitutional legislation,” said Shelley Husband, senior vice president of government affairs at the Association of American Publishers. , noting that more people than ever are accessing e-materials that would otherwise have been purchased from booksellers.

Readers around the world borrowed 662 million ebooks, audiobooks and digital magazines last year, up 19% since 2022, according to data from OverDrive, the leading distributor of digital content for libraries and schools.

Libraries Online Inc., an interlibrary consortium in Connecticut, currently spends about $20,000 a month on e-books for its 38 members. Replacing expired titles costs 20% of the consortium’s budget, said Rebecca Harlow, chair of the e-book committee.

“If we were to replace all of the content that expired this year, the cost would exceed our entire annual e-book budget,” Harlow recently told lawmakers. “We have completely lost the ability to build a library collection.”

The consortium leases fewer than 30 books per month for children and 30 books per month for teens, she said.

Dumping e-books and audiobooks isn’t considered an option for libraries with customers like Casey Rosseau, 53, of West Hartford, Connecticut.

Rosseau, an IT worker, has deteriorating eyesight. He reads about 200 audiobooks a year using OverDrive’s Libby app on his phone, and typically spends months on waiting lists for the most coveted titles.

“I’ve always gone to the library to get the latest John Grisham or the latest James Patterson (novel),” he said. “They come out so often that you have to have very deep pockets to be able to buy them.”

In 2021, Maryland passed a law requiring publishers to make ebooks available to libraries on “reasonable terms” if they were offered to the general public. That was rejected by a judge in 2022, after publishers successfully argued that federal copyright law prohibits states from regulating publishing transactions. New York Governor Kathy Hochul vetoed a similar measure in 2021.

Many of the latest legislative proposals try a different approach.

An Illinois bill would void contracts between libraries and publishers that contain certain provisions, such as limiting a library’s right to determine lending periods for licensed electronic materials. Massachusetts and Connecticut are looking at similar proposals.

“Rather than telling publishers to do something in particular, our bill would tell libraries the terms on which they can make deals with publishers,” said Connecticut Democrat Matt Blumenthal.

Husband of the Association of American Publishers said she sees no real difference between Maryland’s overturned law and these latest efforts. Last year, organizations representing publishers, booksellers and authors formed the Protect the Creative Economy Coalition to oppose state legislation.

But Julie Holden, assistant library director at the Cranston Public Library in Rhode Island, said that without a change in the law, local librarians will not only continue to face financial pressures but also be bogged down by examining lists of expiring digital leases to decide whether they can do that. justifying spending more money to renew them all.

“Taxpayers who fund our public libraries deserve better. Much better,” she said.