Advocacy - WDLC and Digital Content
Posted 09/08/2025
Board Education and Advocacy for WDLC
Why It Matters:
Board members are crucial to the strategic direction and stewardship of public libraries. Supporting the Washington Digital Library Consortium (WDLC) ensures equitable access across the state to digital materials, particularly for rural and underfunded libraries. By investing in shared infrastructure, board members promote fiscal responsibility, statewide collaboration, and inclusive service. WDLC membership enables libraries to maximize their budgets while offering a diverse digital collection that no single library could afford alone.
This is not just about digital books; it is about equity, education, and efficient use of taxpayer dollars.
| What Board Members Can Do: |
|---|
|
Supporting Documents:
Posted 09/08/2025
Library Staff Education & Advocacy
Why It Matters:
Library staff on the frontlines of patron service are uniquely poised to explain wait times, manage patron expectations, and emphasize the value of library participation in the WA Digital Library Consortium (WDLC). When staff understand licensing and pricing issues, they can effectively explain to patrons the challenges inherent in offering an eMaterials collection and can be advocates for fair eMaterials pricing.
|
What Library Staff Can Do: |
|---|
|
Why Keep the WDLC Whole?
Remaining a part of the WDLC offers significant benefits:
- Collection size: A larger eMaterials collection than would be possible for individual libraries.
- Collection Diversity and Scope: Member libraries and selectors contribute different knowledge, cultural backgrounds and content expertise.
- Scale and Efficiency: Smaller libraries especially benefit from shared resources.
- Work Distribution: Shared responsibilities reduce the burden on individual libraries.
Why is an eMaterials Collection Important?
- Increased Accessibility: Improves access for patrons with vision/reading challenges or transportation/health challenges.
- Space Efficiency: Expands the library's collection without needing physical space.
Why Are eMaterials Costs a Concern?
- Licensing vs. Ownership: Libraries can only purchase licenses for digital content, unlike physical materials, which are owned outright.
- Licenses typically expire after a set time or a certain number of checkouts (e.g., 12 months, 26 checkouts).
- Once expired, the item remains in the catalog but shows as unavailable and must be repurchased.
- Replacement Costs: eMaterials need to be replaced more frequently than physical items.
- Single-User Access: Many eBooks and eAudiobooks are licensed for one user at a time (OC/OU model). To meet demand, libraries must buy additional licenses.
- Higher Costs: Libraries pay 3-4 times more than consumers for eMaterials, making it costly to provide popular titles in multiple copies.
- Market Monopoly: With OverDrive’s near-monopoly on library eBooks and eAudiobooks, libraries lack leverage to negotiate discounts.
- Budget Constraints: If a library's budget is cut, physical materials remain in the collection and accessible, but eMaterials will expire and disappear without funding.
- Publisher Perceptions: Publishers believe library loans cost sales, but many readers discover books at the library and later purchase them—making libraries valuable marketing partners.
Supporting Documents:
Posted 09/08/2025
Patron Education and Advocacy
Why It Matters:
Libraries offer free, equitable access to eBooks and eAudiobooks. However, due to expensive and restrictive pricing models, these digital materials often cost more than physical books and may expire after a set period. This leads to limited availability, longer wait times, and reduced variety, which impacts everyone—especially in rural or low-income areas.
|
What Patrons Can Do: |
|---|
|
Why Learn About eMaterials?
Public libraries are essential in providing both physical and digital materials to the community. However, eMaterials are more expensive for libraries due to higher pricing models set by publishers. These pricing structures impact the variety of titles and length of wait times of eBooks and eAudiobooks.
eMaterials Pricing Models
Unlike physical books, libraries don’t own eMaterials—they only purchase licenses. These licenses are typically time-limited (e.g., 12 or 24 months) or based on the number of uses (e.g., 24 or 48 uses). After the license expires, the item is removed from the collection and must be re-purchased.
- One copy/one user (OC/OU): For most licenses, only one person can access the item at a time, just like a physical book. To accommodate multiple users, libraries must buy additional licenses.
- Higher costs: Libraries pay 3-4 times more than consumers for each eMaterial license. For example, it could cost $1,000 to offer 10 copies of a popular eBook or eAudiobook for a limited time.
These higher prices strain library budgets and challenge libraries to balance the demands of wait times, title variety, and replacement of expired licenses.
How High Prices and Limited Use Licenses Impact Patrons:
- Longer wait times for popular titles, especially expensive ones.
- Reduced variety in the collection, with some series missing books.
- Limited accessibility, particularly for those in rural areas or with less access to technology.
- Equity issues as higher costs and unfavorable licensing terms hurt library budgets.
Benefits of eMaterials:
- Accessibility for those with visual impairments, dyslexia, or other reading challenges.
- Provides access for people unable to visit the library (due to health, transportation issues, library open hours, etc.).
- eAudiobooks are replacing physical audiobooks and are more widely accessible because more patrons have the technology to access them.
- eMaterials allow libraries to expand collections beyond physical space, particularly in the case of smaller libraries.
Supporting Documents:
Posted 09/08/2025
Selector & Member Libraries Advocacy
Why It Matters:
Selectors play a crucial role in stretching limited budgets. With license models often expiring after 12-24 months or based on checkouts, every purchasing decision counts. Opting for flexible models, promoting owned content, and coordinating purchase decisions across the consortium can help mitigate rising costs and long wait times.
|
What Selectors & Member Libraries Can Do: |
|---|
|
Stretching Budgets
Digital collection budgets are affected by prohibitively high publisher pricing, license limitations, and high demand for popular titles. Below are several selection strategies that can maximize the impact of your purchasing power.
1. Use Shelf Express Lists
OverDrive’s Shelf Express offers free automated cart plans, curated by OverDrive Content Librarians and updated on a weekly or monthly basis, to help stretch budgets. Some plans include:
- Bang For Your Buck: Recently released titles (mostly eBooks) priced under $10.
- Listen for Less: Recently released audiobooks priced under $50.
To register, fill out this form.
2. Use Curated Lists to Guide Browsing
Curated lists in OverDrive Marketplace boost visibility of already owned titles by featuring older titles with active licenses, timely themes, or hidden gems with no holds queue. Use curated lists in conjunction with Lucky Day titles to drive engagement without new spending.
How to Create Curated Lists:
- Manual Lists: Go to OverDrive Marketplace > Curate tab > Standard Curation.
- Dynamic Lists: Automated Curation updates based on set criteria.
- Detailed Instructions – OverDrive Marketplace Help Guide
Be Strategic with Licensing Models
Preference Perpetual Licenses that offer long-term value without expiration over metered access licenses when possible. Below is a summary of licensing models:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Stay Informed About Publisher Pricing
Publisher pricing and licensing terms can dramatically affect how far you can stretch your digital materials budget. Use Readers First tools to find publishers with fair pricing and flexible terms. Prioritize titles from these publishers to maximize your spending power.
Shelf Talkers
Shelf Talkers are customizable messages that appear on Libby to engage patrons. They can highlight librarian recommendations, share a favorite quote from a title, or explain high-demand titles with long wait times.
Examples of Shelf Talkers:
(Example of a Shelf Talker publicizing a local event; added in an Advantage account as the information being shared only relates to that member library)
(Example of a Shelf Talker sharing a quote; added in the consortium account as the information being shared could be relevant to all member libraries)
To Add a Shelf Talker (user must have Create/View Carts or Curate permissions):
- Sign into OverDrive Marketplace. Use your consortium account login if the Shelf Talker will be visible to the entire consortium and your Advantage account login if the Shelf Talker will only appear to your library users.
- Search for a title.
- Click on "Shelf Talker" and add your message (50-300 characters).
- Optional: select Schedule Note to add a start/end time or Attribute Note to add a name, location or creator photo.
- Remove Shelf Talkers either by scheduling an end date or by manually selecting Delete Note at the bottom of the Shelf Talker window.
Message Example for High-Demand Titles:
- "This title is in high demand. Digital copies cost libraries 2-5x more than consumer prices, and licenses expire after 1-2 years. Thank you for your patience!"
Lucky Day
The Lucky Day collection offers high-demand titles with no wait. These are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Designate titles in the Curate tab to enable Lucky Day copies. Titles with copies designated as Lucky Day must have at least one “regular” consortium copy.
Benefits:
- Can reduce frustration for patrons waiting in long queues for bestsellers.
- Rewards browsers, encouraging discovery and repeat visits to Libby. An automated curated list can highlight any Lucky Day titles currently available for checkout.
- Fully utilizes time-based licenses by limiting lending gaps created by the holds process, stretching your purchasing power.
- Can be used to highlight key events (awards season, author tours, One Book programs).
Advantage & Advantage Plus Accounts
Advantage accounts: Allow libraries to purchase titles for their own patrons, reducing wait times and targeting local needs. Titles purchased with an Advantage account are available exclusively to that library’s cardholders. Advantage accounts have a separate login from OverDrive Marketplace shared by the consortium. Advantage purchases do not count towards the consortium collection development fiscal commitment if applicable.
Advantage Plus accounts: Provide the option of sharing Advantage titles with the entire consortium while continuing to prioritize checkouts to the purchasing library’s cardholders. Advantage Plus is an optional setting within the Advantage account. Sharing titles can be automated or manual and can follow customizable rules based on lending models. Using Advantage Plus to share Advantage content with other libraries can help ensure that the purchasing library gets maximum value from their investment.
Why Use Advantage?
- Faster access for local patrons via lower holds-to-copy ratios.
- Make additional copies available for book clubs, programs or other initiatives.
- Provides local control over purchasing priorities.
- Increased ROI as purchases directly benefit your community.
Get Started with Advantage:
Contact Holly Kabat (hkabat@overdrive.com) for setup and guidance regarding tailoring your Advantage settings.
Learn More:
Patron Messaging Templates
For Audible Exclusives:
- Option A (Concise):
"The title you requested is an Audible Exclusive. This means the publisher has granted Amazon exclusive rights, so we are not allowed to license it for the Washington Anytime Library. We understand this can be frustrating—unfortunately, some publishers restrict library access to certain titles or platforms. Please let us know if we can help you find an alternative." - Option B (expands into pricing/lending model restrictions):
"The title you requested is currently an Audible Exclusive. This means the publisher has granted Amazon exclusive rights and prevents libraries from licensing it. We understand this can be frustrating—unfortunately, some publishers restrict library access to certain titles or platforms. In addition to exclusivity, publishers often limit access through short-term licenses or charge significantly higher prices to libraries than to individual consumers. These practices make it difficult for us to offer every title our patrons are looking for.
We're happy to help you find this title in another format or suggest a similar read. Thanks for using your library!”
Supporting Documents: