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Update on Hoopla Flex Consortium and Hoopla Flex Integration

Submitted by Olivia Montolin on

Hoopla Service Overview

For libraries unfamiliar with these services:

  • Hoopla Instant Collection: A pay-per-use digital collection that is always available
  • Hoopla Flex Collection: A one copy/one user digital collection

Hoopla Flex Consortium

SWAN is exploring a Hoopla Flex consortium, contingent upon vendor improvements to catalog discovery integration. A Hoopla Flex consortium would allow libraries to move or share Flex titles with other libraries in the same consortium. There is no option for a Hoopla Instant consortium.

Hoopla Flex Integration Issues

Current Status

While Hoopla Flex has been successfully integrated into the Aspen library catalog for standalone library systems, SWAN will not be implementing the Hoopla Flex integration at this time due to significant technical issues.

Consortium Development

Hoopla Flex for consortium functionality remains in early development stages.

Critical Technical Issues

The following issues make the Hoopla Flex integration unsuitable for SWAN's shared catalog system:

  • Single Library Limitation: Only one library within the SWAN consortium can successfully add their Flex titles to the shared catalog system. For example, when Library A and Library B both bring in their Flex titles to the catalog, while both libraries have designated Flex titles, only one library's Flex titles collection and availability will be used for both libraries.
  • Inconsistent Title Availability Display: Titles available as Flex in one library may not appear in search results, particularly if they're not part of the Instant collection in the other library.
  • Misleading User Interface Information: Flex titles are incorrectly labeled as "Instant" and checkout confirmation dialogs display incorrect information (showing Instant checkout counts instead of Flex counts).
  • Unpredictable Checkout Behavior: Real-time API calls during checkout can cause availability status to change, preventing patrons from checking out titles even when Flex copies should be available.

 

For questions regarding Hoopla services or consortium participation, please submit a ticket to SWAN.