Seocho District Library Contactless Safety Service Operation

‘Seocho Book Payback’ Service Offers Full Refund for Books Purchased at Local Bookstores Returned Within 3 Weeks... Nation's First Online Book Exchange ‘Seoripul e-Book Market’ Launched

[Asia Economy Reporter Jongil Park] Seocho-gu (Mayor Eunhee Jo) operates a customized non-face-to-face untact service for residents to provide a safe opportunity to enjoy reading culture for residents exhausted by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

Seocho-gu Electronic Library holds 29,220 e-book titles and 1,479 audiobooks, the largest collection among Seoul's autonomous districts, and since August 22, it has expanded the borrowing limit from 5 to 10 books.

The electronic library, which can be accessed anytime and anywhere via web or mobile, is a highly satisfactory non-face-to-face service especially for residents who find it difficult to visit the library in person, particularly office workers with time constraints.

Also, the online 'Seoripul e-Book Market' held since August 4 has received many donated books due to steady interest from residents. The online book market system, the first of its kind nationwide, was developed independently by Seocho-gu and is currently undergoing patent application. It is a very useful system in the untact era and will be held regularly in the future.

To help residents who find it difficult to use distant libraries, the district has been providing the 'Seocho Book Payback Service' since June last year, allowing them to use nearby local bookstores. This popular service, which completed patent registration in March, offers a full refund if books purchased at nine local bookstores that signed an MOU with Seocho-gu are returned within three weeks. The returned books are then stocked in public libraries for general use.

Best-selling books can also be read immediately without waiting, and usage has increased from 900 cases per month to a maximum of 1,991 books, making it a highly popular service among students as well as people of all ages and genders.

Additionally, the Seocho-gu Yangjae Library operates the 'Hope Wings Book Service,' which delivers books by courier to the doorsteps of pregnant women, infant caregivers, and the elderly who find it difficult to go out near their homes. This service allows safe borrowing and returning from home, with a maximum of 5 items per person (4 books and 1 non-book DVD), available twice a month.

Seocho-gu Mayor Eunhee Jo said, “We have prepared customized services for residents to enable reading culture activities by operating library non-face-to-face services perfectly suited for the untact era,” adding, “We will do our best to help residents heal their tired bodies and minds from COVID-19 through books and find peace of mind.”