Friend or Foe?
Do Libraries and the Publishing Industry Help or Hurt Each Other?
I have been volunteering at my local public library since the seventh grade. My beloved Hussey-Mayfield Memorial Public Library runs three programs geared toward fostering youth engagement: Tween Council, Teen Council, and the Teen Volunteer Corps. These programs are designed to help keep kids involved with the library’s programs and interested in reading. Most libraries—particularly public, K-12, and university—host a myriad of programs and events every year in an effort to promote reading within their communities (most recently, my library has started running a ‘seed library' in the summer to attract aspiring gardeners). The average reader would reasonably think that libraries and publishers were a match made in heaven. One supplies the readers while the other supplies the books. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that this picture-perfect scene is mostly fictitious. What was once a symbiotic relationship in which publishers only slightly felt that libraries were cutting into their sales and libraries only vaguely recognized that publishers were ripping them off is now a tense and awkward acquaintanceship plagued by price gouging and purchasing limitations.
The mission of public librarians is to inspire a desire for lifelong learning, a trait that should interest the publishing industry greatly. The logic is simple: public libraries facilitate reading within their communities and readers bankroll the publishing industry. It’s no secret that the United States reading levels are shockingly low. Metaphorically speaking, we’re scoring straight Cs. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the United States ranked number 25 globally in overall scholastic performance in 2018. That’s 11 spots behind the United Kingdom and 17 spots behind our neighbors to the north, Canada.
Despite these disheartening statistics, all hope is not lost. All across the country, public libraries are running educational support programs. For instance, the San Luis Obispo Library in California is providing educational support to parents with children transitioning into kindergarten in predominately Hispanic households. This is especially crucial as many children who don’t speak English in their homes enter the (already strained) public education system feeling isolated from their peers and ashamed of their English language skills—feelings which certainly do not promote a love of literature. Programs such as this support students while helping to reduce the sizable workload many public-school teachers are already overburdened with. A quick visit to SLO Library’s website reveals that they cater to their community by hosting a multitude of bilingual programs for children and adults of all ages to promote literacy in both English and Spanish.
Even with this intrinsic connection, libraries and publishers continue to clash, most recently, over access to e-books. Since the pandemic, the e-book market has exploded like never before. In the face of brick-and-mortar stores closing their doors to in-person shopping, an economic recession, and a global paper shortage, the publishing industry has experienced record profit levels. In fact, according to data analytics group WordsRated, “The Big Five’s annual revenue has been growing at an average pace of 4.8% per year since 2016, peaking at 9.92% in 2021." This will be unsurprising news to most readers as there was nothing else to occupy our quarantine days with except endless Zoom meetings and media consumption. However, despite the fact that e-books are more popular than ever, public librarians have struggled to gain access to them. Unlike print books, in which libraries can buy a copy and own it forever, e-books require libraries to engage with third-party providers such as Libby or OverDrive. These companies make the majority of their profits from marking-up the already high prices set by the publishing industry. Due to this, access to electronic books is being granted to libraries at an inflated cost, sometimes up to five times what a regular consumer would pay.
The Big Five’s main concern seems to be the rate at which libraries can lend e-books. Physical copies of books can only be lent one at a time, but e-books could theoretically be lent to an infinite amount of library-goers at once. To avoid this reality, publishers restrict the lending capabilities of e-books. Additionally, this access is further restricted to a set time frame or amount of loans, meaning that if libraries want to continue lending popular e-books, they will need to periodically re-purchase them at said inflated price. This is especially notable since public libraries are nonprofits funded by the government and, therefore, these inflated prices are being paid for by your taxes! The fact that libraries are wildly unconcerned with turning a profit, as most nonprofits are, does not seem to have quelled the anxieties of the publishing industry, especially with Amazon encroaching on the market. Services like Audible have transformed the book industry from a buy-to-own model to a subscription-based service wherein patrons can listen to an unlimited amount of audiobooks as long as they continue to pay the subscription fee, further cutting into the already slim profit margins of publishers.
The partnership between public libraries and the publishing industry is tenuous at best, and a train wreck waiting to happen at worst. A secondary part of the issue is that libraries have absolutely zero avenues to negotiate with publishers. They are allowed to buy books and e-books at the prices set by the industry and that is that. Obviously, this purchasing model does not jive with the eternal downward trend of public library funding. While librarians are enthusiastic about the future of digital lending and the accessibility it offers to their patrons, they also recognize the grim reality that the prices of digital materials will eventually pose an insurmountable challenge.
Admittedly, I am biased toward the plight of public libraries. As a long-time lover of libraries and an aspiring future librarian, I am hopeful that libraries will manage to rekindle their relationship with the publishing industry and continue to foster a love of reading (and writing!) in their communities. After all, I understand that the publishing industry needs to be at least somewhat profitable if librarians want new books lining their shelves. Ultimately, public libraries provide so much more than “just books” to their patrons. Take away the books and strip them down to the studs and what do you have? A safe, air-conditioned building with free access to clean bathrooms and public Wi-Fi. Just a couple more of the invaluable services that libraries provide.
Sophia Congdon (’23) graduated from Susquehanna University in 2023, where she studied English Publishing & Editing and Spanish Language. While there, she found the most fulfillment serving as the editor in chief of The Squirrel, the satire and comedy magazine on campus. Sophia is originally from Indianapolis, Indiana and often wonders how she ended up at a tiny school in central Pennsylvania. Post undergrad, Sophia will be taking a big nap, a gap year, and then going to graduate school for library sciences (preferably somewhere with a shorter commute).