January 30, 2014

Question

Stacey Malek (TX)

Dear all,

I got a call yesterday from a library that is part of an ebook consortium.  She asked me how they should count those ebooks.  We went through the new definition clarifications for unit of purchase, but part of the licensing agreement doesn't seem to fit the new simultaneous use definitions.  Part of the licensing does; one title for single use, or unlimited use.  However, the consortium purchased 2,040 titles with 81,328 licenses.  As I understand it, the license is not tied to specific titles.  This is for the entire consortium.  So, it is not really "single use" or "unlimited use."  After talking with her, I believe she should count the 2,040 for the number of ebooks and not the 81,328, since those licenses are not tied to the titles.

I'd like to know if anyone else has come across this particular licensing arrangement and if we are on the right track for counting those ebooks.

The librarian was kind enough to send me an email, below, outlining the issue and how she and I think it should be counted.

Thanks for your help!

SDC Comments

Jamie McCanless (WI)

We agree with using the 2,040 number and counting the library's total e-books as 3,201 units.

As described, there is no limit to the number of users who can access a title at any given time so I'd treat it as unlimited simultaneous use. The total number of uses just isn't part of either federal definition.

John DeBacher (former SDC WI)

Looking at this, I suggest using the 2,751 as the total. At least in our statewide consortium, separate epub and Kindle purchases are not made for titles. Instead, the consortium purchases a “copy” of a title (one-to-one use), and that title is available in as many as 3 formats (epub, PDF, Kindle), but still limited to one-at-a-time access.

I posted the question out to some on our statewide Overdrive consortia selection committee. Here’s the response I got:

The individual copy is available in several formats, but only the title is selected, not the format. Thus a title in both Kindle and E-pub counts as 1 not 2. The patron selects the format upon checkout, and then the item is considered checked out and unavailable until returned, regardless of the format. Multiple copies of a title are treated just as if they were an additional print copy.

I hope that helps (confuse things)!