Westlake Porter Public Library Offers Free Music Downloads

cardholders don’t have to borrow music; now they can keep it. Through Freegal, an online music catalogue, patrons can download three MP3s each week from 150 Sony Music Entertainment labels like Columbia Records and Epic Records.

Rocky River Public Library is the only other one in the area that offers the service.

Since Porter Public began offering Freegal, 214 patrons have downloaded hundreds of songs.

“We knew it was going to take off,” said library Director Andrew Mangels. “Digital rights management has been a tough issue and people have been waiting for this for a while.”

So far, pop has been the most popular genre, followed at a distance by rock, with GLEE as the most frequently downloaded artist, according to Assistant Director of Public Services Mary Worthington.

The digital files are compatible with most MP3 devices, and are compatible with players like Windows Media Player on PCs and iTunes on Macs. Patrons can even preview songs on their computers before they download.

Library staff can show patrons how to download at the reference desk. Any resident of Ohio can hold a card at any library in the state, so the service is free to all residents.

“The bottom line is that this is where audio-visual material is going,” Mangels said. “Libraries have always stayed on the technology curve and we’re happy to do it.”

Mangels also noted that many artists don’t even release their albums on CD anymore. “If we’re going to make available what people want, we want to have it,” he said.

Porter Public has offered free downloads of audio books for years and also has e-books available for download onto e-readers. The electronic books will remain on a portable device until erased, but the books will corrupt on a hard-drive after a while.