Palace Project
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Washington State Library (WSL) and the Palace Project
Libraries are Palaces for the People
-Eric Klinenberg
Washington State Library History and Strategy
The Washington State Library (WSL) partnered with Lyrasis in 2021 for three years for an ebook app with purposes to:
- Make a non-commercial, distributor-agnostic app available
- Utilize unencumbered funds to reward publishers willing to experiment with new ebook/audiobook licensing models
- Make it easy for libraries in the state to test and try out Palace. Used LSTA funds to pay for installation and hosting fees for three years
- The contract has been extended for three years through 2026
Initially, the WSL contracted with SimplyE, a software being co-developed by the New York Public Library and Lyrasis. Lyrasis then opted to further develop their own version of the open source ebook software and named their version The Palace Project.
WSL / Palace Project Timeline snapshot
- September 2019 –began collecting statewide ebooks
- November 2019 –opened RFP for implementing and hosting SimplyE for any library in the state for 3 years
- January 2020 –WSL selected proposal from LYRASIS
- March 2020 –Contract signed and program begins
- April –July 2020 –7 WA libraries agree to participate in the program: Anacortes, Asotin, Bellingham, Everett, Kalama, Walla Walla Rural, Whatcom County
- June 2021 –Knight Foundation Announcement –Palace Project born
- June 2022 –Overdrive integration live in Palace
- November 2022 - WSL extended contract with Palace Project through 2026
The Washington State Library's Palace collection includes the following:
- More than 32,000 titles
- Simultaneous multi-user licensed content from IPG, Chicago Review Press, Triumph, and more
- Library Journal and Publishers Weekly vetted indie titles
- Washington indie authors
- Foundational fiction, non-fiction, and Banned Books from Palace Marketplace
- Amazon published titles
- Arcadia
- RB Digital audiobooks
- Blackstone audiobooks
- Audible
For more information on the WSL Palace Project, contact:
Jude Guzzy
Cooperative Projects Librarian
Washington State Library / Office of the Secretary of State
jude.guzzy@sos.wa.gov
OR
Mike Buschman
Development Manager and LSTA Coordinator
Washington State Library / Office of the Secretary of State
mike.buschman@sos.wa.gov