by Caroline Gabsewics
Staff Writer
The Jacksonville Public Library is one of the first library systems in the country to offer a new way to rent movies and TV shows — for free.
The “MyLibraryDV” is a program on the Jacksonville Public Library’s Web site that can be accessed by anyone with a library card.
Charles McMorran, assistant director of support services for the library, said the program has been on the Web since July and since then, they have seen more than a thousand downloads.
The MyLibraryDV offers a different type of on-demand video service that was created by Recorded Books LLC. TV shows from the Discovery Channel, National Geographic and Travel Channel, to name a few, and over 500 movies are available to download seven days a week, 24 hours a day. All downloads are free with a Jacksonville Public Library account.
“It is a niche market right now,” said McMorran. “Blockbuster and Netflix have made some attempts and contemplated doing this, but they are just not seeing the profits.
“It is an excellent example where the library is very cutting edge.”
When McMorran began working for the Jacksonville Public Library system four years ago, his goal was to bring new technology to the library.
“We are now one more step in making the Jacksonville Public Library system a leader in technology,” he said.
Since the Jacksonville Public Library system was one of the first libraries in the country to offer this program, McMorran said it has been interesting to see how it has grown in the past few months.
“There is a purchase agreement, similar to getting cable service. The basic service offered just TV shows and now the next level offers the feature films,” he said. “The next evolution will include new releases and they want to have the films available on the program the same day they come out on DVD.”
But that third tier of service may not come to Jacksonville’s library system for a few years.
“With the city budget cuts, we can’t add that yet,” he said. “It costs $41,000 for just the TV shows and films. To add new releases, it will be an additional $28,000 a year.
“We already had to trim back on a number of programs, but hopefully we can add that feature in the future.”
McMorran said the TV shows and feature films have been popular, but he hopes more people find out about the program.
To access the program, users must go to www.jpl.coj.net. Under the task bar that says “Resources,” scroll down to “Downloadable Media.” Once that page opens, the user can click on the “MyLibraryDV” logo to begin the process.
The Web site offers step-by-step instructions for downloading the movies and TV shows. First-time users must download a file-transfer program to securely download MyLibraryDV files. The program only needs to be installed once.
Movies can be viewed for seven days, and at the end of seven days, the file will become encrypted and cannot be accessed, said McMorran. A user can also download up to 10 films or TV shows within those seven days.
McMorran added that it is possible to connect some computers to a TV.
“I am in the process of doing that at home, and I am looking forward to watching the movies on the big screen soon,” he said.
The program can only be used outside of the library because of library policies, he said. There is a 30-minute time limit on the library’s computers and they would also have to provide higher speed Internet to handle the downloads. McMorran said he would like to see the policies change down the road so the program can be used at the library.
McMorran said Jacksonville’s library system was one of the first 20 in the U.S. to purchase and use the program.
“We were an early implementor of it and I have seen it in other library systems in Florida already,” he said.