S&S latest publisher to change digital book lending terms

In the US, Simon & Schuster (S&S) has become the fourth of the Big Five publishers to change its digital book licensing terms for libraries in the past year, reports Publishers Weekly.

In a statement sent to libraries, S&S officials confirmed that its ebooks will be available for two-year terms on a one copy/one user model as of 1 August. New release titles will be priced between US$38 (A$54) and US$53 (A$76). Previously, most S&S ebooks were sold on one-year licenses. A ‘select number’ of S&S ebooks will be available on a per-checkout basis.

S&S will also introduce the two-year meter to digital audio titles, following a similar move by Hachette in June. Previously, all Big Five publishers offered their ebooks to libraries on a perpetual access model.

HarperCollins is currently the only Big Five publisher that offers ebooks to libraries for set number of lends per license, allowing 26 lends per license, with no time limit, as well as offering a selection of backlist titles on a per-checkout (cost-per-circulation) basis.

Category: Library news International