Wait time for eBooks? Why electronic library books aren’t instant in Fresno County

Dom McAndrew
·2 min read

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Audiobooks and eBooks are a big part of Fresno County’s lending library, but electronically “borrowing” the most popular titles can still mean weeks of waiting. Why is that?

Buying content online, such as movies, music or video games, can be instantaneous. You choose what you want and the download starts right away – but at Fresno County Public Library it is not that straightforward.

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“There are a few reasons why you might see a longer than expected wait time to check out our eBooks,” said Interim County Librarian Sally Gomez. “The most common reason is the more popular an eBook is, the more holds there will be, which will increase the wait time.”

Gomez says the library needs to purchase a license for every eBook that can be borrowed as publishers require one digital library copy to be loaned to one patron at a time – which can increase the wait time. For example, as of Tuesday evening, only two copies of “Verity” by Colleen Hoover are available of the 37 total licenses purchased by the library.

“In addition, the number of digital copies the Fresno County Public Library purchases generally depends on demand and budget. If demand is high for a title, the Library tries to purchase additional copies,” said Gomez.

“To give a frame of reference for the cost of eBooks, publishers often charge libraries multiple times the cost that an individual consumer would pay for the same title. For example, for “Verity” by Colleen Hoover, libraries pay $65 per eBook copy, while individual consumers pay about $13.99 for this title from Amazon.”

YourCentralValley.com has reached out to the publisher Hoover Ink for further comment on the price difference but has not received a response.

The revelation comes as Fresno County Public Library revealed on Tuesday that its users have read and listened to over a million digital books in 2023, a first for the library system.

The top three most checked-out eBooks were:

  • “Verity” by Colleen Hoover

  • “It Ends with Us” by Colleen Hoover

  • “It Starts with Us” by Colleen Hoover

Top top three most checked-out audiobooks were:

  • “I’m Glad My Mom Died” by Jennette McCurdy

  • “Spare” by Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex

  • “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling

Officials say the Fresno County Public Library is one of 152 in the world to surpass one million digital checkouts in a single calendar year.

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