New E-library to replace Ellibs, Overdrive and ePress services

A person on device at the beach.
Photo: Suvi-Tuuli Kankaanpää/Keksiagency

The Finnish nationwide e-library became accessible to the residents of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area as well on 29 April 2024. The e-Library will replace the former Ellibs and Overdrive e-book services and the remote access magazine service ePress during 2024. Also the Rockway service will be phased out in 2024.

In future, the Finnish nationwide e-library provides you with access to e-books, audiobooks and digital newspapers and magazines via a single application. More material will be added as Finnish publishing companies enter into cooperation with the e-library. The new e-library will initially operate as a mobile application only.

You do not need a library card to borrow material from the the e-library, as users sign in to the service using strong identification, such as online banking credentials. During the identification process, the service also checks whether your municipality of residence is covered by the service. In other words, simply being a customer of Helmet Library does not guarantee access to the Finnish nationwide e-library. You can also check whether your municipality of residence has joined the service on the e-library’s website.

The services being phased out and the schedule for closure

  • The Ellibs service will stop taking reservations on 29 April. The service will remain accessible until the end of the autumn.
  • The OverDrive/Libby service will stop taking reservations on 1 October. OverDrive will remain accessible until the end of 2024. The service will also have some new material added to it in 2024.
  • The remote access ePress magazine service will be phased out on 1 July 2024. Only the ePress magazines that were available for reading in the library will continue to be available for reading in libraries.
  • The Rockway service offering video courses on music will be discontinued on 15.8. Rockway will not be replaced by another service.

The Finnish nationwide e-library is provided by the National Library of Finland in collaboration with public libraries. So far the service has been joined by just over 200 municipalities, as a result of which the e-library can be accessed by 85% of Finnish people. More municipalities will be joining the service in 2025.

Check out frequently asked questions about the Finnish nationwide e-library.