International library news
PRH consolidates library ebook terms
Penguin Random House (PRH) has announced that all ebooks sold to libraries in the US and Canada from 2016 will be supplied under the Random House’s perpetual access model, reports Publishers Weekly. Currently, Penguin ebooks are licensed to libraries for one year at close to consumer prices, while Random House ebooks have no expiry date but are offered at a higher price, ranging from just under US$20 (A$27) per title to a maximum of US$85 (A$116)—which will drop to US$65 (A$89) next year. PRH also said it plans to offer ‘periodic limited-time special value-pricing’ through ebook wholesalers from next year. American Library Association president Sari Feldman has welcomed the move to the perpetual access model and the reduction of the price cap, but said that many libraries ‘will miss the flexibility of paying near-consumer prices for e-copies they may not wish to maintain indefinitely, and some will be unable to afford to provide access to the e-books their communities seek’.
Category: Library news
