Libraries struggle to afford the demand for e-books and seek new state laws in fight with publishers

HARTFORD, Conn. — Whenever bestselling author Robin Cook releases a new medical thriller, the head of the public library in West Haven knows demand for digital copies will be high. The modestly funded West Haven Library has spent more than $12,000 over the last three years to lease just 276 additional digital titles beyond what patrons can access through a consortium of public libraries. Publishers, however, argue the arrangement is fair considering e-book licenses for libraries allow numerous patrons to “borrow” them and the per-reader cost is much less expensive than the per-reader rate. “Those come out so often that you have to have really deep pockets in order to be able to afford to buy them.” In 2021, Maryland passed a law that would have required publishers to make e-books available on “reasonable terms” to libraries if they were being offered to the general public. An Illinois bill would void contracts between libraries and publishers that include certain provisions, such as restricting a library’s right to determine loan periods for licensed electronic material.