Niles Public Library has teamed up with Hoopla online media delivery service, allowing patrons to stream or download movies, TV shows, audiobooks and music albums for free.
The library unveiled the new service on Dec 1. To access Hoopla, patrons can either download an app or visit its website at hoopladigital.com. While streaming is unlimited, the downloads come with built-in time limits, and patrons can only download 10 titles per month.
Niles Public Library joins 42 libraries throughout Illinois that partnered up with Hoopla. Some of the other nearby libraries that partnered with the service include Skokie Public Library, Morton Grove Public Library and Park Ridge Public Library.
Only patrons that have valid library cards with partner libraries can use the service. Hoopla can be accessed through its website, and it offers apps for Apple and Adroid devices, as well as Kindle Fire. Patrons can access Hoopla 24/7.
When a patron downloads a title from Hoopla, the file comes with a built-in time limit. Once the limit expires, the file is automatically erased. The limits are set at seven days for music, three days for movies and TV shows, and three weeks for audiobooks.
While patrons can’t renew items on Hoopla, they can re-download them again after they expire. However, patrons are limited to 10 downloads a month, and every re-download counts toward that limit.
In a press release, Niles Library Interim Director Susan Lempke said that the partnership was established in response to patrons’ needs. A growing number of Niles residents use mobile devices and movies, TV shows and music. The library wanted to figure out a way to meet those needs.
“We’re always trying to find new ways to meet the needs and wants of our community members,” said Lempke. “Our new partnership with Hoopla digital gives our patrons instant access to a broad collection of movies, TV shows, music and audiobooks in a format that they never had before.”
Sue Wilsey, the library’s marketing and publicity supervisor, said in an interview that the partnership with Hoopla is just one of the many online resources the library has available to its patrons.
“We also have Flipster, where patrons can download the latest issues of popular magazines,” she said. “We have Rosetta Stone and Mango language learning resources. We have Ancestry.com library version for genealogy research, Consumer Reports, Tutor.com and much more.”
While not all titles that are available at Niles Library are available on Hoopla, its selection is extensive.
As previously reported, the service offers over 10,000 titles overall. And Wilsey indicated that if there’s something that’s not available on Hoopla, patrons can request it.
“There is a contact link on the bottom of each Hoopla page a patron can send [a request] to Hoopla,” she said.
In a press release, Hoopla founder and owner Jeff Jankowski said that the service is constantly working on expanding its selection of titles.
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“We’ve worked for years to create a best-in-breed service that is fun, fast and reliable,” he said. “And we continue to secure content deals to expand the offering of movies, TV shows, music and audiobooks,”
Lempke emphasized that Hoopla has a number of advantages. The fact that it’s accessible 24/7 means that patrons aren’t limited by library hours. The built-in time limit means that patrons who download Hoopla titles would never have to pay late fees.
Because the titles are digital, there’s no worry that a popular movie or a TV show won’t be in stock because all available copies are already checked out.
When contacted last week, Wilsey said that it was too early to tell how patrons feel about Hoopla.
“We just launched it on [Dec 1], so we will see,” she said. “Our staff is enthusiastic about offering it.”