Libby is the “one-tap reading app” from your library for eBooks and audiobooks

 

CLEVELAND – September 14, 2017 – Meet Libby, the innovative and fun new reading app from the public library that’s getting rave reviews from readers and librarians. Built by OverDrive and launched in time for International Read an eBook Day, the app is a friendly guide to help people search and borrow ebooks and audiobooks from their local library. Warm, personal and friendly, Libby is easy to use and provides a unique reading experience for readers of all ages – always one tap away from the library, their bookshelf and their next great read.

Free to download, Libby is available now in the Apple App Store, Google Play and Windows store. OverDrive, the leading digital reading platform for libraries, serves 38,000 libraries and schools worldwide, including 90 percent of U.S. public libraries.

“Libby is fast, fun and friendly,” said Lisa Tattersall, Program Supervisor for Collections and Adult Services at Washington County Cooperative Library in Oregon. “We are happy to be able to point our patrons to an app that’s easy to use and thoughtfully designed. Libby brings a sense of fun and discovery to getting digital books from our library.”

Since it launched for beta testing in December, Libby has received positive reviews by both readers and librarians. With more than half a million installs and over 700 five-star reviews, the user-friendly app is quickly becoming a favorite to discover, borrow and enjoy ebooks and audiobooks for free. It’s a library aide available 24/7, anytime and anywhere.

Libby guides readers to find a local library and remember their library card number. If a user doesn’t have a library card, Libby directs the user to the library, or in some markets, offers an instant library card based simply on a cell phone number.  Libby was built upon OverDrive’s best-in-class OverDrive Read and OverDrive Listen technology, which allows Libby to present any ebook or audiobook instantly in a simple, beautiful format regardless if the title is a novel, comic or graphic novel, reference material, cookbook or Read-Along.

Librarians love Libby because it helps reach more of their community and bring more readers to the library. Readers love Libby because of its user-friendliness and the fact that they’re always one tap away from the book they’re reading, other books they’ve checked out, or the extensive catalog at their library.

Libby features everyone can enjoy:

  • Download ebooks and audiobooks for offline reading, or stream them to save space
  • Sign in to multiple libraries, with one or more cards for each library
  • Sample any ebook or audiobook with a tap – nothing to download or delete
  • Kindle® users can send library ebooks to their device or app (U.S. only)
  • Libby remembers a reader’s place in a book as well as what notes and bookmarks that were created across all devices, allowing for a synced reading experience
  • Keeps track of reading history in the activity tab

“We are always working to improve our user experience with new technology, and we are excited to launch Libby,” said Shannon Lichty, Director of Library Partner Services at OverDrive. “We think readers everywhere will love how fun and easy it is borrow and read ebooks and audiobooks from their library.”

Libby is free to download in the Apple App Store, Google Play and Windows store. For more information and to preview the app, visit https://meet.libbyapp.com/.

 

About Rakuten OverDrive

OverDrive is the leading digital reading platform for libraries and schools worldwide. We are dedicated to “a world enlightened by reading” by delivering the industry’s largest catalog of eBooks, audiobooks and other digital media to a growing network of 38,000 libraries and schools in 70 countries. Founded in 1986, OverDrive is based in Cleveland, Ohio USA and owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten. www.overdrive.com

 

Contact:
David Burleigh
Director of Marketing
dburleigh@overdrive.com

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