Hold Suspension Updates
This FAQ outlines upcoming changes to hold suspensions across Libby, Sora, OverDrive library websites, and OverDrive Marketplace. These updates simplify how users manage suspended holds, creating a more accurate and equitable experience for both users and library or school staff. Below, you’ll find answers to common questions to help you understand what’s changing, why it matters, and how it may affect you and your users.
Users in Libby, Sora, and OverDrive library websites no longer select an end date for their hold suspension. Instead, they’ll simply choose to suspend or unsuspend a hold.
If a user misses their hold on its first delivery, it will be suspended until they unsuspend it. It no longer unsuspends after 7 days.
Holds are automatically canceled if they’re suspended for 365 consecutive days.
Libby, Sora, OverDrive library websites, OverDrive Marketplace, and OverDrive’s public APIs are impacted.
OverDrive’s public APIs will receive the same updates as our products.
When suspending a hold with the Holds API, hold suspensions will be indefinite and users will choose when they want to unsuspend their holds. Before vendors update their applications for this change, holds may appear with a 365 day suspension period. This is because holds are automatically canceled if they’re suspended for 365 days.
API partners will not be required to make changes in advance of this update. Existing holds will be converted to the new hold suspension system, and existing implementations will not break.
If you have questions about a specific vendor’s implementation, please reach out to them for more information.
In the “Current Holds” report, the calculation for the current average wait period (CAWP) is changing. Today, the CAWP uses the date the end user placed the hold. With this update, the CAWP will be calculated using the date a hold was most recently unsuspended.
By calculating the CAWP this way, we’re measuring when the user is actively waiting for their hold. We’re treating the suspension period as a signal that the user didn’t want the hold yet and weren’t actively waiting for it.
Example
- A user placed a hold on 1 Jan 2024.
- They suspend it for 4 months, from 1 Feb 2024 to 1 June 2024.
- In our fictional example, today’s date is 15 June 2024.
Currently, the CAWP would be based on the date the hold was placed (1 Jan). After these updates, the CAWP would be based on the date the hold was unsuspended (1 June). So, the time spent waiting for the title would only reflect the time the user has spent waiting, when we know they actively want the title (14 days). We believe this updated calculation more accurately reflects the true amount of time a user spends waiting.
We’ve heard your feedback about the impact of holds on budgets and user wait times.
The benefits of this change are:
- A fairer system: Users aren’t offered a hold again until they’re ready for it.
- Copies of holds are freed up for users deeper in wait list.
- Unwanted holds will sit unclaimed for less time.
No, a user can suspend as many holds as they’d like, up to their card’s hold limit. There’s no limit to the number of times an individual hold can be suspended and unsuspended.
In Libby, the change to hold suspension policy will be communicated to users with existing holds on their Shelf.
Libby Help materials will also be updated to reflect the updated hold suspension behavior.
OverDrive library websites will show an alert or countdown on suspended holds that are close to being canceled. This alert will appear when there are 30 days remaining before the suspended hold is canceled.
Libby users can see how many days remain until their suspended hold is canceled by tapping Unsuspend Hold and checking the number next to “Lapsing in.”
Sora users will not be notified when a suspended hold is close to being auto-canceled.
Holds that are currently suspended will be updated to have an indefinite suspension period. If suspended holds have not been unsuspended after 365 days, they will be canceled.
There will be no change to existing active holds.
We plan to set these changes live in mid-September.