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Private lending libraries have coexisted peacefully with public ones for more than a century, but the changing consumer mindset, thanks to services like Netflix, now means some book lovers want books with similar convenience. Several books-by-mail operations offering fresh best sellers and classics alike for a monthly fee have taken root and could provide competition for libraries by luring consumers either impatient for certain titles or unable easily to access their library.
Launched in 2000, Booksfree.com offers plans starting at as little as $9.99 per month for access to 79,800 paperbacks and 18,000 audiobooks. À la NetFlix, there’s no time limit and postage is free. With 150,000 hardback and softcover titles on tap (no audio), new rival BookSwim offers two lending packages: a basic three-book plan ($19.99) and an 11-book deal ($35.99). Subscribers return some books while retaining others so they always have reading material during the exchange, with books generally shipped within two business days of ordering.
George Burke, BookSwim’s marketing director, asserted that titles are purchased on demand so that all orders can be filled without buying unnecessary inventory. Purchase options also are available for keeping favorites. Burke said that BookSwim is undertaking a huge upgrade to add 100,000 titles in coming months.
ILL Supplement?
Although BookSwim offers a service similar to that of libraries, Burke told LJ that the company would like to “supplement a library’s stock by providing them with access to our own. We could be another form of interlibrary loan.” Libraries, said Burke, could start monthly or quarterly subscriptions for 100 or 200 books.
The plan is still taking shape, but the company is negotiating with several libraries, including the 74-member North Texas Regional Library System (NTRLS) about implementing pilot programs. BookSwim’s web site has a BookSwim for Libraries page soliciting partnerships. NTRLS member Little Elm Public Library has taken the first step. Director Tina Hager told LJ that the library is “in the beginning stages of various different plans to work together.”
To sweeten the deal, BookSwim is implementing a feature seeking donations for libraries. “Instead of subscribers paying $20 a month for their membership,” Burke said, “they can elect to pay $21, with the extra money going to the subscriber library of their choice.” BookSwim also offers discounts to library cardholders.
Swap & Shop
Along with the book rental operations, several free sites have launched. For example, PaperBack Swap offers its 22,000 members the opportunity to swap books among themselves. Users join, post a list of books they want and those they wish to swap, and other members follow suit. There are no fees; each member pays mailing costs for his/her own titles.