Why in the world is there a waitlist for eBooks and eAudiobooks?


If you aren’t already on the eBook and eAudiobook bandwagon, here’s what you should know: In addition to our physical collection in each of our branches, MCLS has a virtual branch where you can find all of the digital materials you have access to with your MCLS card! We’ve got everything from cooking classes to movies and TV, and, of course, eBooks and eAudiobooks. But, if you’ve ever looked into our digital book collections before, you may have been surprised to see that they have waitlists. Sometimes, very long waitlists. This may have leftyou wondering, why in the world is there a waitlist for eBooks and eAudiobooks?

Worry not, fellow library lover. I’m here to answer your questions. 

Why don’t eBooks and eAudiobooks work like Kanopy, where everyone can watch the same movie at the same time?

When the library puts an eBook or eAudiobook in our collection, we don’t actually own it. Rather, we own a (usually temporary) license for our patrons to access the book. The majority of those licenses allow the book to be checked out to only one person at a time, resulting in those dreaded long waiting lists. The same kind of licensing applies to eAudiobooks.

Why doesn’t the library just buy more licenses for eBooks and eAudiobooks?

The thing is, these licenses are pretty expensive. Libraries get nice discounts when we buy physical copies of books (for example, The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett retails at $35 but libraries can get it for $20.13) but the opposite applies to eBooks and eAudiobooks. For example:

The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett

    eAudiobook for libraries: $85.50

    eAudiobook for readers: $31.58

    eBook for libraries: $52.20

    eBook for readers: $16.99

It makes sense that we might be charged more for digital materials since they don’t need frequent replacement the way a physical book would, but eBook and eAudiobook licenses come with an additional cost: Limits on how long we can use them.

How do eBook and eAudiobook licenses work?

It depends. Publishers choose the licensing model for each of their books; some books have plenty of licensing options for libraries to choose from, and others just have one. There are four main models that are used when libraries purchase licenses for eBooks and eAudiobooks:

  • One Copy/One User: This kind of license never expires, and can be checked out by one person at a time. It’s the most similar to borrowing a book from our physical collection.
  • Metered Access: This kind of license expires after a certain amount of time, or after a certain number of checkouts. Sometimes they can be checked out by multiple users at once, and other times they can’t. It’s a pretty unique model.
  • Cost Per Circ: This kind of license expires after one checkout. Essentially, the library buys a single-use license whenever someone checks out a Cost Per Circ(ulation) licensed title. It’s similar to pay-per-view movies, but we cover the cost.
  • Subscriptions: This kind of license expires after a certain amount of time, and can be checked out by multiple users at once. Usually, this license applies to frequently updated materials like magazines. It’s similar to a typical subscription.

If you’re reading this and wondering why it’s so complicated, you’re not the only one! New Jersey librarians are fighting for a bill to regulate licensing contracts.

Can you buy a specific eBook or eAudiobook that I want?

If you want a book that isn’t currently available to borrow through MCLS, you can suggest it through the Libby app by tapping Notify Me next to the title. This tells us that you’re interested in that title, and sets up a notification for you if we end up purchasing it. However, if a title doesn’t appear in a Libby search, that means it’s not available for us to purchase at all. For example: the popular Dungeon Crawler Carl series by Matt Dinniman is not available as an eAudiobook on Libby due to it being an Audible exclusive eAudiobook, so you’d have to purchase that one on your own through Audible. There have been other app-exclusive titles that eventually became widely available, though, so don’t lose all hope!

But I love the library because it’s free! Where else can I find free digital books?

You mean legally, right? Right?! Most books in the public domain can be found online; these are typically older books no longer under copyright due to time passed since publication, or books that were never under copyright. This means plenty of classics like Shakespeare plays and Austen novels and are freely available!

You can find many classics on these sites:

Do eAudiobooks work on any device? 

Our eAudiobook collection can only be played from inside the Libby app. All you have to do is tap Borrow next to the title, and then Open Audiobook. The app works on iOS and Android, but not on older devices that lack the ability to download apps. For eAudiobooks found through other resources like Project Gutenberg and the Internet Archive, it varies. You’ll have to take a look at the particular resource’s guidelines for using their materials.

I don’t have time to borrow the book I put on hold on Libby, but I still want it. What can I do?

If you know you will have time to enjoy the eBook or eAudiobook in the near future, you can suspend the hold on Libby. This keeps your place on the waitlist, without holding up the line for anyone else. Manually unsuspend the hold, and the book will become available to you once you reach the top of the waitlist. Keep in mind that suspended holds expire after 365 days, so we recommend only using this function if you know you’ll be ready to read soon. If you don’t borrow a title within 72 hours of it becoming available, your hold is automatically suspended and the copy is passed onto the next person in line.

Any tips for getting the most out of Libby?

Oh you know I have tips.

  • First, log in with your MCLS card and PIN. Your PIN is typically the last four digits of the phone number you used to create your library card! If you’re having trouble signing in you can visit one of our branches to speak with a staff member, call a Reference desk, or use our Support form.
  • Log in with any other library cards you have! If you have a New Jersey State Library card or a Pennington, Hamilton, or Trenton card as well, those libraries are also part of eLibraryNJ. If you have a Princeton card, they have their own collection.
  • Place holds! Every time someone places a book on hold, it tells us that there is interest in that title. When a book has 10 holds, we look into purchasing another license so that you can get your books faster.
  • Select “Notify Me” for titles we don’t have. If a book isn’t in our digital catalog, the button that would normally say Place Hold or Borrow will say Notify Me. Choosing this option lets us know that someone is interested in that title, and also notifies you if and when we add a copy to our collection.
  • When you finish a book before the due date, return it! This helps move the waitlist along even faster. Just access your Libby shelf, and find your Loans. Select Manage Loan beside the title you want to return, and tap Return Early. Done!
  • Hide AI-Generated materials. From Libby’s main menu, find Content Controls. From there, select AI Contributions. Here, you can limit visibility of books created using Generative AI.
  • Use Libby’s help page! They have plenty of great tutorials for everything from basic navigation to Kindle troubleshooting. Find the page here.
  • Check out Libby’s official Tips and Tricks. Visit this page to view staff tips!

- Kelsey C. @ IT Tech Instruction

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