Update on Macmillan ebooks embargo

States Act on Ebooks

March 13, 2020

On March 3, library advocates in New York sent 10,000 letters to state lawmakers as part of a public campaign in response to recent efforts to limit library access to ebooks. The letters, drafted by the New York Library Association in partnership with the American Library Association (ALA), were in support of legislation that would require publishers who … Continue reading States Act on Ebooks


US Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I., left) and Julie Holden, president of the Rhode Island Library Association

Bringing Congress on Board with #eBooksForAll

February 11, 2020

Like many libraries and consortia around the country, RILA has denounced Macmillan Publishers’ policy that places an eight-week embargo on new ebook titles after libraries purchase one copy. Cranston Public Library (CPL), for example, has stopped buying any ebook or digital audio book published by Macmillan or its imprints. CPL has also stopped promoting Macmillan authors and … Continue reading Bringing Congress on Board with #eBooksForAll


Ramiro Salazar

The Latest on #eBooksForAll

January 26, 2020

Ramiro S. Salazar, Public Library Association (PLA) president and director of San Antonio (Tex.) Public Library was aided by four panelists who have been working on the campaign since the beginning: Sari Feldman, Alan S. Inouye, Patrick Losinski, and Larra Clark. Salazar noted that the embargo affects all libraries, public libraries in particular. ALA has … Continue reading The Latest on #eBooksForAll


John Sargent

Macmillan CEO Hosts AMA

January 25, 2020

Sargent, who has been at the center of Macmillan’s controversial ebook lending policy that took effect November 1—a model that limits libraries to purchasing one copy of each new ebook and imposes an eight-week embargo on additional copies—invited attendees to “ask him anything.” Before opening the floor to comments, he explained to attendees how Macmillan … Continue reading Macmillan CEO Hosts AMA


2019 Year in Review

2019 Year in Review

January 2, 2020

Macmillan Ebook Policy Draws Fire Macmillan Publishers announced a policy preventing libraries from purchasing more than one copy of a new ebook title for the first eight weeks after a book’s release. In protest, American Library Association (ALA) launched the #eBooksForAll petition, which by November 27 had garnered more than 216,000 signatures. Said ALA President … Continue reading 2019 Year in Review


Update on Macmillan ebooks embargo

Update on Macmillan Ebook Embargo

December 31, 2019

More than 230,000 people have signed the #eBooksForAll online petition urging Macmillan to reverse its decision to limit a single copy per title to each public library for the first two months after its release. And advocates are making inroads at the congressional level—particularly with the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law, which … Continue reading Update on Macmillan Ebook Embargo


ALA logo

ALA Responds to Macmillan Letter

October 31, 2019

“Hours before the American Library Association (ALA), the Public Library Association and allies were to deliver more than 160,000 petition signatures opposing the planned November 1 embargo on library ebook purchases (and two months after the campaign began), Macmillan Publishers CEO John Sargent directly addressed librarians for the first time. Unfortunately, the letter misrepresents ALA’s longstanding and good-faith … Continue reading ALA Responds to Macmillan Letter


From left: ALA Past President Loida Garcia-Febo; PLA Executive Director Barb Macikas; ALA Past President Sari Feldman; Alan S. Inouye, ALA senior director of public policy and government relations; and Tim Cherubini, executive director of the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies, outside the offices of Macmillan Publishers on October 30, 2019. Photo: Daniel Root

Library Advocates Deliver Ebook Petition to Macmillan

October 30, 2019

“I traveled from the nation’s capital to New York City, the publishing capital, to stand for the vast number of readers who will be impacted by this discriminatory embargo,” said Alan S. Inouye, the American Library Association’s (ALA) senior director of public policy and government relations. He was joined by past ALA Presidents Loida Garcia-Febo … Continue reading Library Advocates Deliver Ebook Petition to Macmillan


Advocacy Update

New ALA Report Cites Abusive Pricing, Denial and Delay of Sales to Libraries by Major Publishers

October 24, 2019

“By outright denying or delaying library access to digital content, dominant actors in digital markets endanger America’s competitiveness and our nation’s cultural heritage,” ALA President Wanda Brown said in an October 24 statement. “Everyone who reads, writes, performs, or sells creative works is harmed when libraries are unable to purchase and deliver content for all … Continue reading New ALA Report Cites Abusive Pricing, Denial and Delay of Sales to Libraries by Major Publishers


#eBooksForAll Update

October 22, 2019

King County (Wash.) Library System (KCLS)—which has led the US in digital lending for five consecutive years, with more than 4.8 million checkouts of ebooks and digital audio—has decided to protest against Macmillan Publishers’ decision to embargo ebook titles. “We don’t like them dictating our business model. They’re making a business decision, and so are … Continue reading #eBooksForAll Update