Digital Media Timeline: OverDrive, Libraries & Digital Lending (1971–2026)

1971

Project Gutenberg: First eBook CreatedOpen

Michael Hart digitized the U.S. Declaration of Independence at the University of Illinois, creating the first eBook. Project Gutenberg would become the foundational model for free digital text distribution.

Source Project Gutenberg historical records

1971-1991

Project Gutenberg Grows to 10 TitlesOpen

Over 20 years, Project Gutenberg expanded to 10 public domain titles, all manually typed by volunteers. Growth was limited by the absence of the consumer internet.

Source Project Gutenberg archives

1979

Steve Potash Earns J.D.Open

Steve Potash earned his J.D. from Cleveland State University College of Law. He subsequently practiced law and worked in legal publishing technology.

Source Heights Schools Foundation alumni profile; Cleveland State University

1983

Potash Dubbed "The PC Lawyer"Open

The American Bar Association Journal profiled Potash for his pioneering use of personal computers in legal practice. He was reportedly the first attorney to use a laptop in an Ohio courtroom.

Source ABA Journal; Heights Schools Foundation

1986

OverDrive, Inc. FoundedOpen

Steve Potash founded OverDrive, Inc. in Cleveland, Ohio. The company initially focused on distributing legal and professional reference content on floppy disks and CD-ROMs.

Source Library Technology Guides; OverDrive corporate history; Wikipedia

1987

OverDrive Partners with West PublishingOpen

OverDrive partnered with West Publishing to distribute legal reference materials on CD-ROM and floppy disk. This partnership established OverDrive in the legal technology market.

Source Purdue e-Pubs ATG interview with Steve Potash

1990s

CD-ROM Era for Digital BooksOpen

CD-ROMs became the primary medium for distributing digital reference works, encyclopedias, and professional content. OverDrive distributed content for legal and corporate clients in this format.

Source Library Technology Guides; OverDrive corporate history

1994

Project Gutenberg Reaches 100 TitlesOpen

Project Gutenberg reached 100 digitized public domain titles, accelerated by the growth of the World Wide Web.

Source Project Gutenberg records

1997

Project Gutenberg Reaches 1,000 TitlesOpen

Project Gutenberg crossed the 1,000-title milestone, demonstrating the viability of large-scale free digital text distribution.

Source Project Gutenberg records

1997

Sari Feldman Joins Cleveland Public LibraryOpen

Sari Feldman joined Cleveland Public Library as head of community services. She would later become one of four CPL librarians whom OverDrive credits with directing the development team that built its first library ebook lending platform.

Source OverDrive 20th anniversary press release (PRNewswire, May 4, 2023); ALA records

1998

First Dedicated E-Reader DevicesOpen

The Rocket eBook and SoftBook Reader launched as the first dedicated consumer e-reader devices. Neither achieved mass adoption, but they demonstrated consumer appetite for digital reading.

Source Industry records; consumer electronics history

1999

Open eBook Forum (IDPF) Co-FoundedOpen

OverDrive co-founded the Open eBook Forum (later the International Digital Publishing Forum / IDPF), which developed the EPUB standard. This positioned OverDrive at the center of digital publishing standards development.

Source Library Technology Guides; IDPF records

2000

OverDrive Marketplace LaunchedOpen

OverDrive launched its digital content Marketplace, shifting from physical media distribution (CD-ROMs, floppy disks) to online digital delivery for publishers and libraries.

Source Library Technology Guides; OverDrive corporate history

2001

OverDrive Adds PDF SupportOpen

OverDrive added PDF and other digital format support to its platform, expanding beyond its original CD-ROM distribution model.

Source Library Technology Guides

2002

Cleveland Public Library Approaches OverDriveOpen

Cleveland Public Library approached Cleveland-based OverDrive to develop a digital lending platform. In OverDrive's own account, CPL librarians Patricia Lowrey, Cindy Orr, Sari Feldman and Tracy Strobel "directed an eager local ebook development team at OverDrive to build and launch what would become the first popular ebook and audiobook service from a library."

Source OverDrive 20th anniversary press release (PRNewswire / company.overdrive.com, May 4, 2023). Note: this is OverDrive's own retrospective account, published 20 years after the events it describes; we have not located a contemporaneous 2003-era source. An often-repeated $50,000 Clevnet setup-fee figure is omitted here because we could not trace it to a primary document.

2003

First Library eBook Lending Platform LaunchedOpen

Cleveland Public Library and OverDrive launched the first public library eBook lending platform. Digital books could be downloaded to personal computers. OverDrive says the model it established now reaches 88,000 libraries in 109 countries; that figure is the company's own, and we have not independently verified it.

Source OverDrive 20th anniversary press release (PRNewswire, May 4, 2023); Encyclopedia of Cleveland History

May 2003

Sari Feldman Moves to Cuyahoga County Public LibraryOpen

Feldman left Cleveland Public Library to become Executive Director of Cuyahoga County Public Library (CCPL), where she would serve for 16 years.

Source ALA records; CCPL records; Library Journal

2004

CDs Overtake Cassettes for AudiobooksOpen

Compact discs officially replaced cassettes as the dominant physical format for audiobook distribution in libraries and retail.

Source Industry records; OverDrive corporate history

2005

Simultaneous Use (SU) Model IntroducedOpen

OverDrive and publishers introduced the Simultaneous Use (SU) licensing model, allowing unlimited concurrent patrons for select titles at a higher per-title price. This was the first alternative to the "one copy, one user" model.

Source OverDrive publisher white papers; library industry records

2007

Amazon Kindle Launch / EPUB SupportOpen

Amazon launched the Kindle e-reader. OverDrive announced support for the EPUB publication standard. The 1 millionth digital book was loaned by a public library through OverDrive.

Source Amazon; Library Technology Guides; OverDrive press releases

2008

OverDrive Launches MP3 AudiobooksOpen

OverDrive introduced DRM-free MP3 format audiobooks. DCPL was the first library in the nation to offer MP3 audiobook downloads through OverDrive.

Source OverDrive corporate history; DCPL records

2009

Multiple Library Lending InnovationsOpen

OverDrive added McGill University as its first academic library partner. OverDrive helped Baker & Taylor develop digital distribution capabilities. The company expanded to serve corporate, academic, and public library markets.

Source Library Technology Guides; OverDrive corporate history

2010

Insight Venture Partners Invests in OverDriveOpen

Private equity firm Insight Venture Partners became the majority shareholder of OverDrive. The Library of Congress ceased production of cassette books to focus exclusively on digital.

Source Library Technology Guides; PitchBook; Library of Congress

2010–11

OverDrive Sues Baker & TaylorOpen

In May 2009, B&T made OverDrive its exclusive digital-media provider, gaining access to OverDrive's platform, account lists, and proprietary catalog data. Within months, OverDrive found B&T distributing the rival Blio e-reader and sued in Delaware Chancery (2010), alleging B&T used the partnership as a "subversive device" to take trade secrets. In June 2011 the court let the core claims stand: trade-secret misappropriation, fraud, breach of exclusivity. The outcome never became public. B&T launched its own ebook platform, Axis 360, immediately after. (These are allegations from the complaint; the case never reached a merits ruling.)

Source OverDrive, Inc. v. Baker & Taylor, Inc., C.A. No. 5835-CC (Del. Ch. June 17, 2011); Justia; Potter Anderson case summary

2011

HarperCollins 26-Checkout Cap / Kindle LendingOpen

HarperCollins imposed a 26-checkout cap on library eBook licenses, generating significant industry controversy. OverDrive and Amazon launched Kindle compatibility for library eBooks (U.S. only).

Source American Libraries Magazine; Library Journal; OverDrive press release

2012

LexisNexis PartnershipOpen

OverDrive partnered with LexisNexis to launch a customized e-lending platform for the legal market, returning to the company's legal technology roots.

Source OverDrive corporate history; Library Technology Guides

Dec 2012

Kroll Solvency Opinion for OverDrive HoldingsOpen

Kroll (Duff & Phelps) issued a solvency opinion for OverDrive Holdings, Inc. dated December 12, 2012. This occurred during the Insight Venture Partners ownership era.

Source Kroll (duffandphelps.com) public solvency opinion records

2013

Metered Access Licensing ModelsOpen

Metered Access licensing became standard across major publishers, offering libraries a lower per-title cost but requiring re-purchase after a set number of checkouts or a time period. This replaced perpetual ownership for many titles.

Source OverDrive publisher white papers; ALA Digital Content Working Group

Apr 2013

OverDrive Blue Sky Campus Grand OpeningOpen

Steve Potash hosted the grand opening of OverDrive's new headquarters, the Blue Sky Campus, in Garfield Heights, Ohio. OverDrive's announcement said Potash "will present" donations to two library directors: CPL's Felton Thomas, Jr. (for Cleveland Public Library's "I'm Ready to Read" campaign) and CCPL's Sari Feldman (for Cuyahoga County Public Library's STEP tutoring program). Both directors were recognised, not one; and the release announces the presentation in advance rather than reporting that it occurred.

Source OverDrive press release, "OverDrive Announces Opening of World Headquarters" (company.overdrive.com / GlobeNewswire, Apr 9, 2013) — retrieved and quoted directly.

2014

Cost Per Circulation Model / WMA SunsetOpen

The Cost Per Circulation (CPC) licensing model emerged, charging libraries per checkout rather than per license. OverDrive began discontinuing WMA format in favor of MP3, completing removal by May 2015.

Source OverDrive publisher white papers; Library Technology Guides

2015

Rakuten Acquires OverDrive for $410 MillionOpen

Japanese conglomerate Rakuten acquired OverDrive for approximately $410 million. Rakuten also owned Kobo, creating a vertical integration between e-reader hardware and library digital lending.

Source Rakuten filings; Library Technology Guides; PitchBook

2015-2016

Sari Feldman Serves as ALA PresidentOpen

Feldman served as President of the American Library Association. She co-chaired the ALA Digital Content and Libraries Working Group, which engaged digital content vendors, including OverDrive, on licensing terms and library access policies.

Source ALA records; American Libraries Magazine. Note: we have found no evidence that Feldman's ALA or working-group role benefited OverDrive, and none is implied. The dates are recorded as a sequence, not a causal chain.

2017

Libby App LaunchedOpen

OverDrive officially launched Libby in June 2017 (beta began December 2016) as the modern successor to the legacy OverDrive app. Libby would become the primary interface for library digital lending.

Source OverDrive press release (Jun 22, 2017); App Store records

2017

OverDrive Achieves B Corp StatusOpen

OverDrive achieved Certified B Corporation status, formalizing its commitment to social and environmental standards. The company adopted the mission of a "World Enlightened by Reading."

Source B Lab certification records; OverDrive corporate communications

2018

Sora App for K-12 LaunchedOpen

OverDrive launched the Sora app, a dedicated reading platform for K-12 schools. The 1 billionth digital book was checked out through all OverDrive platforms.

Source OverDrive press releases; Library Technology Guides

2019

Lucky Day / Skip the Line FeatureOpen

OverDrive introduced the "Lucky Day" feature (also called "Skip the Line"), allowing libraries to designate copies of high-demand titles for immediate, first-come-first-served borrowing without a waitlist. This gave patrons faster access to popular titles while libraries controlled how many copies were made available.

Source OverDrive Lucky Day press release (Jul 23, 2019); Libby help documentation

Aug 2019

Sari Feldman Retires from Cuyahoga County Public LibraryOpen

Feldman retired as Executive Director of Cuyahoga County Public Library after 16 years. She was appointed to the OverDrive board 11 months later.

Source CCPL records; Library Journal; ALA records

Jun 2020

KKR Completes Acquisition of OverDriveOpen

KKR completed its acquisition of OverDrive on June 9, 2020 (announced December 2019). Estimated price ~$775.6M (Rakuten reported $365.6M profit on $410M acquisition price). Funded through KKR Americas XII Fund. American Libraries Magazine described the LBO structure: "buyer contributes only portion of purchase price and secures loans from investment banks" and "company itself is saddled with paying off the debts." Library Journal compared the deal to KKR's Toys "R' Us acquisition.

Source OverDrive press release (Jun 9, 2020); Rakuten filings; Library Technology Guides; PitchBook; American Libraries (Dec 2019); Library Journal

Jun 23, 2020

OverDrive Acquires RBdigital from RBmediaOpen

Two weeks after KKR completed its OverDrive acquisition, OverDrive acquired the library business assets of RBmedia, including the RBdigital platform in North America, the UK, and Australia. RBmedia was also owned by KKR. The deal brought 45,000+ audiobook titles into the OverDrive platform. KKR stated it was "uniquely positioned to facilitate this transaction" as owner of both companies.

Source OverDrive press release (PRNewswire, Jun 23, 2020); Crain's Cleveland Business (Jun 25, 2020); Library Technology Guides; American Libraries Magazine

Jul 2020

OverDrive Adds Directors Under KKROpen

OverDrive's July 15, 2020 press release named two new directors: Sari Feldman (former ALA President; former Executive Director, Cuyahoga County Public Library) and Milena Alberti-Perez (former CFO, Penguin Random House). That release did not name KKR's own directors. Three KKR executives are separately documented as OverDrive directors: Richard Sarnoff (Chairman of Media, KKR Americas Private Equity), Ted Oberwager (KKR Partner) and Chresten Knaff (KKR Director) — each named in his own KKR biography and, together, in trade coverage of the Simon & Schuster board, which states the three "all of whom also serve on the board of OverDrive." OverDrive's own executive-team page states that CFO Greg Farmer "also serves on the company's Board of Directors," as does CEO Marc DeBevoise (from 2026); Steve Potash is Founder & Chairman. No single public document gives the board roster as of any one date, so the seat count, and who chaired the board before Potash, remain unestablished.

Source OverDrive press release (Jul 15, 2020); Shelf Awareness (Dec 8, 2023); Publishing Perspectives (Dec 7, 2023); KKR biographies of Richard Sarnoff, Ted Oberwager and Chresten Knaff; OverDrive executive-team page (company.overdrive.com); OverDrive press release (Jun 23, 2026). Note: the Farmer, DeBevoise and Potash board roles are stated on OverDrive's current executive-team page; the page does not date them, so we do not assert Farmer held a board seat as of July 2020.

Sep 2020

OverDrive Max LaunchedOpen

OverDrive launched OverDrive Max, a premium tier allowing libraries to offer patrons enhanced features and expanded access to digital content.

Source OverDrive press releases

2021

Kanopy Acquired / Magazine IntegrationOpen

OverDrive acquired video streaming service Kanopy and migrated digital magazines into the Libby app, creating a unified media experience. The OverDrive Academic division was formally launched.

Source OverDrive press releases; Library Technology Guides; publishing industry reporting

2022

Amazon Ends MOBI Support, Moves to EPUBOpen

Amazon stopped supporting the MOBI format for its "Send to Kindle" feature, transitioning to EPUB. Los Angeles Public Library became the first system to reach 10 million digital checkouts in a calendar year.

Source Amazon developer documentation; OverDrive press releases

2023

Legacy OverDrive App SunsetOpen

OverDrive retired the original OverDrive app, directing all users to Libby. The app sunset completed January 31, 2025 across all platforms. Major libraries began removing CD audiobook collections.

Source OverDrive press releases; library system announcements

Jul 25, 2023

OverDrive Creates First-Ever Chief Marketing Officer RoleOpen

OverDrive appointed Jennifer Leitman as its first Chief Marketing Officer, a newly created C-suite position. Leitman's published career history shows no library background; it includes brand work for HGTV, Francis Ford Coppola's lifestyle company, and Preserve Partners. The creation of a first-ever CMO role three years into KKR ownership follows a standard PE pattern of preparing a company for sale. Her published biography and career history list no library credential. OverDrive CEO Steve Potash told the DC Council in January 2026 that the company employs "over 100 in-house public and school librarians," but none were placed in any of the first-ever executive roles created under KKR ownership.

Source OverDrive press release (PRNewswire, Jul 25, 2023); Crain's Cleveland Business (Jan 2024); LinkedIn; Potash DC testimony (Jan 2026)

Nov 2024

MP3 Download and Desktop App Support EndedOpen

OverDrive removed the MP3 audiobook download option and ended desktop app support for Windows and Mac. All audiobook access moved to the Libby app. Libraries like Iowa City Public Library announced total removal of CD audiobook collections.

Source OverDrive announcements; library system reporting

Jan 2025

Chresten Knaff Promoted to KKR Managing DirectorOpen

Chresten Knaff, one of three KKR executives on OverDrive's board, leads the Technology industry team within KKR's European Private Equity platform. He was promoted from Director to Managing Director at KKR (per KKR's own personnel page). The wider point is not about him alone: when KKR formed Simon & Schuster's board after acquiring the publisher in 2023, the three KKR directors it seated — Richard Sarnoff (who chairs the S&S board), Ted Oberwager and Knaff — were, in Shelf Awareness's words, "all of whom also serve on the board of OverDrive." For that period the same three people sat on the board of the platform libraries buy digital books through and on the board of one of the Big Five publishers selling those books. That is an ownership structure, stated as such; we make no claim that any specific decision resulted from it.

Source Shelf Awareness (Dec 8, 2023); Publishing Perspectives (Dec 7, 2023); KKR personnel pages. Note: the exact start and end dates of Knaff's Simon & Schuster tenure (previously given here as Oct 2023–Sep 2024) rest on a third-party board-tracking site we could not corroborate, and have been withdrawn pending a primary source.

Mar 6, 2025

OverDrive Creates First-Ever Director of Data & Information Science RoleOpen

OverDrive appointed Eric Miller as its first Director of Data & Information Science. Miller is a heavyweight in library technology infrastructure: Senior Research Scientist at OCLC, co-founder of the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative, leader of the Semantic Web Activity at W3C, Research Scientist at MIT. His mandate includes building "visual knowledge maps," "next-generation discovery tools," and a "Science of Reading" initiative using linked data and AI. This is the third first-ever executive position created in Q1 2025, five years into KKR ownership.

Source OverDrive press release (GlobeNewswire, Mar 6, 2025); Library Technology Guides; LinkedIn

Apr 16, 2025

OverDrive Creates First-Ever VP of Education RoleOpen

OverDrive appointed Renee Davenport as its first Vice President of Education to lead the company's K-12 strategy around the Sora student reading app. Davenport is a career EdTech sales executive from Learning Ally, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and McGraw-Hill Education. The creation of a dedicated education vertical with its own executive, five years into KKR ownership, follows a standard PE pattern of preparing a company for sale. Davenport's published biography lists a BS in Education (Ohio University) and no library credential.

Source OverDrive press release (PRNewswire, Apr 16, 2025); ZoomInfo; LinkedIn; Authority Magazine interview (Nov 2025)

Jun 24, 2025

OverDrive and Clarivate Announce Deep Integration RoadmapOpen

OverDrive and Innovative (part of Clarivate, NYSE: CLVT) announced a "deep integration roadmap" at ALA Annual Conference for Libby, Kanopy, and Sora with Clarivate's Vega LX/Vega Discover library platform. This merges library circulation data from the integrated library system with OverDrive's digital content usage data into a single analytics layer, directly aligned with Eric Miller's data science mandate announced three months earlier. New tools expected to roll out in 2026.

Source OverDrive press release (GlobeNewswire, Jun 24, 2025); Library Technology Guides; Yahoo Finance (Jul 6, 2025)

Jul 14, 2025

OverDrive Discontinues Multiple Library Card Sign-In on KoboOpen

OverDrive removed the option to sign in using an OverDrive account on Kobo e-readers, eliminating support for multiple library cards on a single device. Feature had previously been enabled when Rakuten owned both Kobo and OverDrive. Kobo confirmed the change was made by OverDrive. Users are restricted to a single library card on Kobo devices; the Libby mobile app still supports multiple cards.

Source Kobo Help (help.kobo.com, Jul 14, 2025); Good e-Reader (Jul 24, 2025); eReadersForum (Jul 25, 2025); The eBook Reader blog (Jul 25, 2025)

Aug-Sep 2025

Libby "Inspire Me" AI Discovery Feature LaunchedOpen

OverDrive soft-launched an AI-powered book recommendation feature in Libby in August 2025, officially rolled out in September. Uses a large language model to surface titles from each library's collection based on guided prompts. Prioritizes immediately available titles. Potash described it as using an "OverDrive-contained LLM that is only utilizing cataloging information, metadata, and other controlled data points.' Mixed reception from librarians and users.

Source TechCrunch (Aug 26, 2025); Engadget (Aug 29, 2025); Android Authority (Aug 29, 2025); OverDrive official announcement (Oct 3, 2025)

Autumn 2025

PocketBook E-Reader Integration with LibbyOpen

Libby became available on PocketBook devices via firmware update, starting with Era Color and Verse Pro Color models. PocketBook became the second e-reader brand (after Kobo) to integrate Libby directly.

Source Good e-Reader (Nov 4, 2025); PocketBook announcement

2025

Baker & Taylor Shutdown / 820M CheckoutsOpen

Baker & Taylor announced shutdown; libraries migrated to OverDrive. OverDrive reported 820.5M checkouts (+10.9% YoY). Audiobooks +13.5%, Magazines +31.5%. 9.8M new Libby app installs (+3%). Kanopy added 3.6M new users (+41%). 200+ library systems passed 1M digital checkouts for the year. KKR completed its $1.62B acquisition of Simon & Schuster (announced Aug 2023, closed Oct 2023).

Source OverDrive Jan 2026 press release; PitchBook; B&T reporting; Words & Money

2025-2026

Ingram Becomes the Sole Major US Book WholesalerOpen

With Baker & Taylor gone, Ingram Content Group (family-owned, Nashville) became the only major book wholesaler left in the United States, and Ingram Library Services absorbed the largest single share of B&T's stranded public-library business: roughly 2,000 accounts and about 100 former B&T workers. This is the exact consolidation a preliminary FTC antitrust review made Ingram and B&T abandon in December 2018, when it would have left "one national wholesaler." It arrived anyway, through bankruptcy, with no antitrust review triggered.

Source Publishers Weekly gap-survey (Oct 9, 2025); FTC preliminary investigation records (2018); Ingram Content Group / Ingram Industries corporate records

Oct 2025 onward

The Scramble to Fill the B&T VoidOpen

B&T's collapse opened a wholesale vacuum, and the buyers split into two kinds. Financial owners moved in: Barnes & Noble (owned by Elliott Management, which also owns Waterstones) upgraded its &Classwork platform to 3.5 million library-orderable titles; Amazon launched "Books for Libraries" at 30 to 40% off list with free MARC records. Family-owned survivors expanded on their own catalogs instead: Mackin launched MackinPublic (its first public-library line in 43 years), Bookazine (founded 1929) picked up 100-plus library accounts in days, and Brodart survived under George Coe, the ex-B&T executive who launched Axis 360 in 2011 and now runs a deliberately AI-absent shop.

Source Publishers Weekly gap-survey (Oct 9, 2025) and B&N coverage (Mar 16, 2026); Barnes & Noble &Classwork announcement; Amazon Business Books for Libraries; Mackin / Bookazine / Brodart records

Nov 2025

OverDrive Sues OpenAI (Sora v. Sora)Open

On November 19, 2025, OverDrive filed trademark infringement suit against OpenAI in the Northern District of Ohio. OverDrive alleges OpenAI's use of "Sora" for its AI video generator infringes OverDrive's "Sora" trademark used for K-12 education since 2018. A March 2026 order cancelled the preliminary injunction hearing after OpenAI agreed to stipulations; the case moved to damages discovery.

Source N.D. Ohio court filings (Nov 19, 2025); OverDrive press release

Dec 2025 / Jan 2026

Follett Content Partnership / Potash DC TestimonyOpen

In December 2025, OverDrive announced a landmark partnership with Follett Content, uniting the Sora student app with Follett's print distribution network. On January 5-6, 2026, Steve Potash submitted 55-page testimony to the DC Council opposing the Library E-book Pricing Fairness Amendment Act of 2025 (B26-0490). Potash presented data showing DCPL reduced cost per circulation from $4.75 to $0.85 between 2010 and 2025.

Source Follett press release; DC Council hearing record B26-0490

Late Jan 2026

Library Futures Responds to Potash DC TestimonyOpen

Library Futures Executive Director Jennie Rose Halperin submitted a two-page letter rebutting Steve Potash's 55-page DC testimony. Halperin stated Library Futures "played no direct role" in the DC bill's development and said Potash "conflates" controlled digital lending with the bill's focus on licensed/rented materials. Halperin called the testimony's claims "unsubstantiated" and its tone "antagonistic."

Source Words & Money (Feb 6, 2026); Library Futures public letter to DC Committee

Feb 4, 2026

Third Annual Libby Book Awards Finalists AnnouncedOpen

Libby announced finalists for the third annual Libby Book Awards across 20 categories. New for 2025: Best Personal Growth category and Reader's Choice awards. Winners to be announced March 3, 2026 at a live ceremony in New York City.

Source OverDrive press release (Feb 4, 2026)

Feb 5, 2026

KKR Q4 2025 Earnings CallOpen

KKR reported Q4 2025 results. Total AUM grew from $638B (end of 2024) to an estimated $740B+. Strategic Holdings segment reported $83.8M operating earnings (Q4) and $276M for full year 2025. KKR targets $350M+ in strategic holdings operating earnings for 2026. OverDrive sits within the Strategic Holdings segment alongside approximately 20 other businesses.

Source KKR Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript (Feb 5, 2026); Motley Fool; Insider Monkey; Investing.com

Feb 5, 2026

KKR Exit Strategy CommentaryOpen

KKR management stated they would pursue exits only when they see "significant value gaps" and confirmed they look at the Strategic Holdings portfolio "business by business." KKR co-founder George Roberts stated: "We will continue to improve the operations of these strategic holdings. Over time, some of these businesses may be exited, but only when we see a significant gap between internal value creation and market value." KKR has held OverDrive for approximately 5.5 years (typical PE hold: 5-7 years).

Source KKR Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript (Feb 5, 2026)

Feb 5, 2026

OverDrive Not Mentioned on KKR Earnings CallOpen

OverDrive was not mentioned by name on the public earnings call. KKR's strategic holdings segment targets $350M+ operating earnings in 2026 across approximately 20 businesses. OverDrive is a private company inside a PE fund with no public disclosure obligations.

Source KKR Earnings Call Transcript

Mar 3, 2026

OverDrive Names Marc DeBevoise PresidentOpen

OverDrive named Marc DeBevoise (former CEO of Brightcove, former ViacomCBS/Paramount) as President and added him to the board. Founder Steve Potash retained the CEO title and the "long-term vision," while DeBevoise took "operational leadership and execution." Splitting an operating chief off from the founder for the first time since OverDrive's 1986 founding is a classic pre-sale grooming move, arriving in year six of KKR's typical five-to-seven-year hold.

Source OverDrive press release (Mar 3, 2026)

Mar 16, 2026

Baker & Taylor Files Chapter 11Open

Baker & Taylor filed Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for New Jersey (Case 26-12863): $100M to $500M in liabilities against $1M to $10M in remaining assets. The company had already been parted out. Between October 2025 and January 2026 it sold the bulk of its inventory for about $8.7M and collected roughly $11M in receivables; secured lender CIT was fully repaid February 13, 2026. The case proceeds as a liquidation. The lender got made whole; the libraries got an email nobody was reading.

Source B&T Chapter 11 filing, Case 26-12863-CMG (D.N.J.); first-day declaration; Omni Agent Solutions claims docket

Nov-Dec 2025 (disclosed Apr 2026)

Meta and Anthropic Buy B&T's Liquidated InventoryOpen

B&T's Statement of Financial Affairs (filed April 20, 2026) discloses that two of the largest buyers of its liquidated inventory were not retailers or libraries. Meta paid $691,192 for books on November 10, 2025; Anthropic paid $563,388 on December 2, 2025. Both are listed under oath as "liquidation sale customers." The oldest library distributor in the country got liquidated, and the AI companies showed up for the physical stock.

Source B&T Statement of Financial Affairs, Doc 66 Item 13, Case 26-12863-CMG (D.N.J.), filed Apr 20, 2026

Feb-Apr 2026

Follett Content Reconstitutes B&T's Public-Library StackOpen

Follett Content Solutions (owned by the private-equity firm Francisco Partners) rebuilt B&T's public-library wholesale business out of B&T's own people. On February 19, 2026 it announced 10-plus public-library veterans hired, several straight from Baker & Taylor, with 300-plus collective years in the field. Ten weeks later, on April 30, 2026, it shipped a Street Date preorder program and a 600,000-title adult print catalog. The talent did not leave the industry. It got re-shelved under a PE owner.

Source Follett Content Solutions announcements (Feb 19, 2026; Apr 30, 2026); Library Journal; Publishers Weekly

May 5, 2026

DC Council Passes Ebook Pricing Bill, 13-0Open

The DC Council passed B26-0490 unanimously, 13 to 0, over Steve Potash's testimony against it. The bill bars licensing terms that charge libraries materially more than consumer pricing, cap loan counts, or restrict interlibrary loan. It carries a trigger clause: DCPL's contracting rules only take effect once ten other states, holding a combined 50 million people, pass substantially similar laws.

Source DC Council legislative record, B26-0490 (May 5, 2026)

Feb-May 2026

The Multi-State Ebook Legislation WaveOpen

DC's passage rode a broader wave. Illinois passed the Digital Library Protection Act (HB5236) through the House with no recorded no vote; New Jersey has S4520 (Sen. Andrew Zwicker); Rhode Island filed H7606; Minnesota's HF3698 stalled 10-8 in committee on a procedural deadline dispute, not the merits; Massachusetts has a substantive bill stuck in committee plus a study commission that passed the Senate 37-0. All use the contingent-effectiveness drafting framework Connecticut pioneered in 2025.

Source EveryLibrary bill tracker (2026); Illinois HB5236; NJ S4520; RI H7606; MN HF3698; MA H.3595 / S.2710

May 13, 2026

OverDrive Establishes OverDrive Europe GmbHOpen

OverDrive spun its German-speaking Europe business into a standalone GmbH headquartered in Munich, with DACH customers now contracting and invoicing in Euros through a German bank account. A clean, separable revenue unit is exactly the kind of tidy carve-out a buyer likes to see on the org chart: another year-six exit-prep signal.

Source OverDrive Europe GmbH press release (May 13, 2026); OverDrive Europe German-language website

May 26, 2026

Five Library Associations Demand Ebook ActionOpen

Five major North American public-library associations (the Urban Libraries Council, the Public Library Association, the Canadian Urban Libraries Council, the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies, and the Association for Rural & Small Libraries) issued a joint statement calling on the Big Five publishers and platforms to negotiate sustainable terms. Their number: $13 for the consumer ebook versus $55-plus for the two-year library license of the same file. Many libraries now spend half or more of their collections budget on content they will never own.

Source Joint statement, "Leading Public Library Groups Call for E-book Action" (May 26, 2026); ALA press release

Digital Media Timeline: OverDrive, Libraries, and Digital Lending

Sources and method