New terms from the Library Rules of the Municipal Library of Prague.
Online membership or virtual reader´s card
The Library Rules are a basic document that contains a description of the individual activities of the library and their legal basis. It describes users´ rights and duties, the protection of personal data, library services, and the sanctions that may be imposed if the Library Rules are violated. ¨ The text of the Library Rules is regularly revised to take account of developments in legislation and library services. The Library Rules effective as of 1 January 2022 offer a completely revised text which is cleansed of a number of previous interventions. Some basic terms, such as the concept of reader, have been redefined. This term was previously anchored in the physical world, now it has also been transferred to the online space. The importance of the reader account (My Account at www.mlp.cz/en/) has been expanded, which is not just an overview of loans, but it also offers the possibility of managing personal data, reader´s cards and reservations, passwords, renewing reader´s cards or setting up messaging and invitations.
The Library Rules reflect the transformation of library services towards self-service or the development of online services. A new feature is online membership which the library can offer free of charge both for the use of selected online services and all available library services with identity verification (linked to payment of an annual registration fee of 60 CZK). The virtual reader´s card allows the transfer of user rights for library services to another person. However, the responsibility remains with the account holder and delayed loans block further use of not only the virtual card but the entire reader account. Other changes concern the modification of existing rules such as loan limits, the charging of delay charges or the form of reminders.
- The number of CDs/DVDs to be borrowed will be increased to 60 and the loan period will be extended.
- Replacement of lost or damaged library units will be settled in most cases by financial means.
- The library will also start reminding via SMS. Readers will also be able to use SMS to notify them when a reservation has been fulfilled. The cost of one SMS is CZK 2.
- The period during which late fees are charged for long-unreturned books will be reduced to half a year. Delay charges will cease to be charged after six months and all loans will be converted to the appropriate financial value which will be further recovered through the activities of the Legal Department.
Highlights of the 2022 Library Rules
- Items borrowed from the library must be returned or renewed in due time.
- A reader´s card can be in the form of a plastic card or a virtual card, such as a mobile phone card, which the reader generates in his/her reader account.
- The My Account service at www.mlp.cz/en/ provides an overview of loans, reservations and setting options.
- The library provides services not only in the physical space, but also online.
Please ask if you have any questions: by phone (+420 222 113 555), by email (knihovna@mlp.cz), by FB message (www.facebook.com/knihovna) or by visiting the library in person.