A new joint e-library for municipalities is set to go live on Monday, 29 April.
The digital library will include audiobooks, e-books as well as magazines. More than 200 municipalities have joined the endeavour, and the service is accessible to 85 percent of people in Finland. Accessing the service does not require a library card, as patrons use their bank codes to log in.
The goal is to provide residents in Finland the same library services regardless of location.
The e-library, run by the National Library of Finland, will provide material in Finnish, Swedish and English in addition to some content in other languages.
Annastiina Louhisalmi, who works as the e-library's service manager, said publishers' attitudes towards the service vary. For some, the new digital library is an important partner and additional distribution channel, while others have not wanted to sell their e-books and audiobooks to the organisation.
"We really want to find a model that's profitable for both libraries and publishers, as well as for authors," she said.
Louhisalmi said the e-library does not intend to compete with commercial actors. The library has a limited number of licences for titles, which means that just like with traditional books, patrons may have to wait for an e-book or audiobook to arrive.
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