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Recorded Books Adds All-You-Can-Watch Streaming Video Service for Libraries

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 03/14/18

Binge-viewable video could be coming to a library near you. RBmedia, which owns Recorded Books, has released an unlimited streaming video service for libraries, as well as a new version of its app to allow patrons to access multiple content services, including the streaming shows.

RBdigital, the specialized streaming video service, will give library users the chance to view videos from RBmedia's licensed content in the same way they watch shows on Netflix. They'll be able to watch as many shows as they like in a seven-day period while the library pays for a single checkout. According to the company, the unlimited license model will save libraries 75 percent compared to competitive services.

Among the video services covered are:

  • Acorn TV, which features British television and film;
  • IndieFlix, with comedies, documentaries, drama, animation, shorts and classic TV;
  • Qello Concerts, offering full-length concerts and music documentaries;
  • BroadwayHD, with live and recorded new and classic Broadway shows and musicals;
  • Pongalo, covering Spanish-language telenovelas and over 13,000 hours of Hollywood movies; and
  • Learn It Live, with "thousands" of live and on-demand classes covering health, wellness and personal development, among other topics.

RBmedia said it plans to add more streaming content sources to its collection.

Along with the new streaming video service, the company has also released an update to its all-in-one app that lets patrons access the streaming video as well as audiobooks, e-books, magazines and comics, education instruction and games and music. That's available for Apple iPhone and iPad and Google Play.

One library that has adopted the new app is Santa Clara County Library District in California. "The enhanced RBdigital app is a valuable resource for our library," said Bonnie Fullerton, electronic resources librarian at the California library system, in a press release. "Our patrons will appreciate the one-stop convenience of accessing many different types of content from our collection, all in the same app."

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

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