AskWCPL

While we do not subscribe to Kanopy, we do provide access to Films on Demand and the NC LIVE video collection, which are available through our list of online resources.

We also have access to over 115,000 eBooks and eAudioBooks and over 3,000 digital magazines through OverDrive and its Libby app.

Although Kanopy is free to a library user, there is a cost to the library providing access. Kanopy charges libraries by usage, meaning the more people that use the service, and the more content is viewed, the more the library would pay. There is an option to limit the amount of content that can be viewed by each patron and for the library system as a whole each month, but that would mean restricting access and Wake County, with a population of over 1 million people, would reach the budgeted monthly limit quickly.

We have also watched the experiences of other libraries and learned that The New York Public Library, one of the largest library systems in the country, has dropped Kanopy due to its high costs. 

We continue to emphasize the mission of Wake County Public Libraries, "To instill the love of reading and foster the pursuit of knowledge for the residents of Wake County." We work to accomplish that by having the best possible collection of books and audiobooks, both in print and digital formats for the citizens of Wake County. We also work within national guidelines and seek to have a book collection size that allows 2.5 books per county resident.