Posted on February 3, 2020 at 1:30 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek
Don’t expect an end to the tension between Macmillan and public libraries anytime soon.
Publishers Weekly reports that Macmillan CEO John Sargent hosted a ninety-minute “ask me anything” session during the American Library Association’s midwinter meeting.
In it, he continued to deny that his company’s limits on new-ebook title sales were intended to punish libraries and said it would need a few more months to assess whether the policy was accomplishing its goals.
Macmillan’s policy, which took effect in November, limits libraries to buying just one ebook copy of new releases upon publication; for additional licenses, they must wait eight weeks.
In response, many library systems across the nation have announced that they will no longer buy Macmillan books at all.
Librarians at the ALA meeting were generally unswayed by Sargent's defense of the limits; you can read their counterarguments and questions in Publishers Weekly.
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