– April 23, 2025
Beginning May 1st, 2025, the Cape Breton Regional Library will implement changes to Hoopla, the popular digital media service that offers access to eBooks, audiobooks, movies, music, and more.
CBRL had almost one thousand new Hoopla users last year, and with more users joining every month the rising costs are projected to exceed our digital resources budget allocated for 2025. To ensure we can continue offering a wide range of digital and physical materials to our patrons, we must make adjustments to how Hoopla is accessed.
What’s changing:
- Effective May 1st, the number of Hoopla checkouts per patron each month will be reduced from five to three.
- We will also be introducing a Collective Daily Borrow Limit which will ensure that the library does not exceed its limited budget.
A Collective Daily Borrow Limit means that once CBRL lends enough titles out to reach the established daily spending limit, borrowing is turned off for the rest of the day for all patrons. Patrons will receive a message saying to “try again tomorrow” when that limit has been reached. The collective daily borrow limit will reset each day at midnight.
Any daily budget that is not spent will roll over into the following day. Patrons can still borrow 3 items per month as long as the daily spending limit is not reached.
Why make this change?
Libraries all over North America, including several other libraries in Nova Scotia, are having to make tough decisions regarding their Hoopla service. Over the past several years, the costs associated with Hoopla have risen significantly. Hoopla is a pay-per-use service, charging the library for each checkout. Their pricing model makes the costs unpredictable and difficult to budget.
Understanding Hoopla’s Cost Structure
It’s helpful to understand how Hoopla’s pricing works. Libraries pay a set fee each time an item is borrowed. While prices vary, the average cost per checkout for all materials is about $2.80. With more patrons accessing this service each month, these fees add up quickly.
Cost Management Strategies
We remain committed to offering diverse digital resources, but managing these rising costs is essential. By reducing the monthly checkout limit, and introducing a Collective Daily Borrow Limit we can control our costs while continuing to offer this popular service.
Exploring Additional Solutions
Without additional funding for Nova Scotian Libraries, we may have to make further reductions in the future. This would most likely be discontinuing Hoopla service entirely and reallocating funds to another service such as Libby/Overdrive. We have reviewed our data and found that more people are borrowing more items through Libby and on average Libby fees work out to $0.41 per circulation compared to $2.80 per circulation on Hoopla.
Bonus Borrows
We encourage patrons to take advantage of Hoopla’s “Bonus Borrows,” available during the last seven days of each month. These special titles don’t count against your monthly limit, and the Library incurs no cost for them. Look for Bonus Borrows in the app or on Hoopla’s main page during the final week of each month.
Other Digital Services Unaffected
These changes apply only to Hoopla. Other digital services, including Libby/OverDrive, remain unaffected. We also encourage you to continue to borrow physical materials including books, DVDs, Blu-Rays, and audiobooks on CD or Playway.
We know these adjustments may be disappointing to some, and we truly appreciate your support as we balance fiscal responsibility with excellent library service. Your feedback is always welcome — please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts with us as we navigate the future of digital resources at the Library.
Thank you for your continued support of Cape Breton Regional Library.
How can you help
Voice your support for libraries and the need for increased library funding by writing to your MLA.
Donate to CBRL’s Books & Beyond Campaign. All donations to Books & Beyond go towards enhancing our collections of books, Library of Things equipment and kits, and digital library resources.