When Random House Publishing Group acquired comic book and graphic novel publisher Boom! Studios in summer 2024, the deal had swift repercussions for Boom!’s digital catalog. Because Penguin Random House’s policy does not allow libraries to offer their patrons unlimited, simultaneous access to e-books and digital audiobooks, Boom! Studios titles could no longer be made available on Comics Plus, the popular digital platform used in K–12, public, and academic libraries.

“To comply with PRH’s e-book policy, we will be deactivating all Boom! titles in all Comics Plus customer accounts on May 30, 2025,” Comics Plus announced. The platform promised to recommend “read-alikes” to subscribers.

School, public, and academic libraries purchase annual subscriptions to Comics Plus, which boasts “no holds, wait lists, or monthly borrowing limits” as its recipe for success. The company, which is part of the digital content curator LibraryPass, creates Comics in the Classroom tools for educators, readers’ guides for comics and manga book clubs, and programming packages for marketing campaigns, such as library–sponsored summer reading programs.

For LibraryPass CEO Ian Singer, 24/7 access to curated content is an essential principle for the Comics Plus app. “Our lending model is absolutely one of the key differentiators for why libraries love us,” Singer said. “They’re able to supplement their digital collections with content that is popular and not necessarily the content the students know.” He sees students and other patrons encountering Comics Plus in educational settings and using it as “a gateway” to exploring other digital platforms.

Comics Plus users have access to new books and backlist titles from almost 100 independent publishers, including Dark Horse, Fantagraphics, Image Comics, and TokyoPop. Boom! was by no means a majority stake in the company, Singer said. “In terms of royalty impact, they weren’t one of our top publishers, so the impact for actual usage wasn’t too concerning. But this is the first publisher we’ve lost since I took over in 2020, and we’re not accustomed to that. You never like to lose anything in the thousands, as a content aggregator.”

Moni Barrette is the director of collection development at Comics Plus as well as the cofounder of Creators Assemble!, which designs pop culture curricula using graphic novels and tabletop role-playing games. An advocate for comics as drivers of literacy engagement, she expressed concern over how deactivating any titles available through the platform might disrupt classrooms.

“I always like to focus on the library’s perspective, as someone who was a library manager,” Barrette said, explaining that title removals may force classroom or school libraries to rethink their curricula or collections—possibly interrupting a course in progress. “The access model is the key component to a classroom being able to read the same content at the same time.”

Irreconcilable differences?

At Penguin Random House, Skip Dye, SVP of library sales and digital strategy and chair of the PRH Intellectual Freedom Taskforce said the publisher is “always open for dialogue” over its terms, but that “we do not participate in a subscription or unlimited model” for lending and access. “We want to make sure content is rendered beautifully and correctly, and at a fair price,” he said, explaining that he closely monitors the quality and cost of PRH e-books and digital audiobooks for the library market.

“We value libraries, and we have the most models [for digital access] of anyone,” Dye said. He recalled how, during 2020’s pandemic library closures, PRH developed temporary digital licensing terms to ease the financial burden for libraries and encourage borrowing among people who were socially isolated at the time. The company strategized to offer libraries budget-friendly options for e-books and digital audiobooks, giving patrons ready access to online holds and virtual storytimes for children. PRH extended the changes in 2021 and 2022, later making them permanent.

Michael Kelly, publisher of Boom! Studios, acknowledged that “there are always growing pains” during an acquisition, and the adoption of new policies and terms was a “learning experience.” He noted that “Boom! has always been very supportive of libraries and librarians. While it is true that we may not continue with this one service, readers still have access” to Boom! titles, “and we always will be communicative as a publisher.”

Singer, of LibraryPass and Comics Plus, said he would not waver from his commitment to the unlimited, simultaneous lending model that his patrons appreciate. “There is a space for both models, and it’s clear that the larger publishers are not going to change,” he said. Asked whether Comics Plus could accommodate PRH guidelines in exchange for increased access to content like Boom!’s catalog, Singer said, “We wouldn’t do that. That’s OverDrive; that’s hoopla to a certain extent; and that is not in the best interest of the library market.”

Singer added: “It makes no sense to change our model, because then you start competing with OverDrive.” He suggested a different path toward compromise: “The question is, Why won’t OverDrive enable better linkage with companies like ours?”

This article has been updated for clarity.