The North Little Rock Library system is joining 34 library systems across the state in boycotting MacMillan Publishers' titles in response to the company's decision to embargo library access, officials said.
The William F. Laman Public Library in North Little Rock is joining the Arkansas Digital Library Consortium, which are pooling their buying power to provide more digital content to their communities through the consortium, which is administered by the Arkansas State Library.
Beginning Friday, libraries of all sizes will be limited to purchasing one copy of a newly published Macmillan e-book title and must wait eight weeks to buy additional copies.
"We must hold firm on this issue because while we do not purchase many MacMillan titles, the concern is that this sets a precedent for other publishers, which would definitely affect our ability to provide timely access to electronic materials," Crystal Gates, executive director of the William F. Laman Public Library in North Little Rock, said in a news release.