Competitive Environment of Selections of Designated Managers in Public Libraries

Abstract

　In 2003, the Designated Manager System (DMS) was established through a revision of the Local Autonomy Law, and has been gradually introduced in public libraries in Japan. This study aimed to reveal the competitive environment of the DMS and its actual situation in public libraries. From December 2018 to March 2019, we surveyed public libraries located in the prefectures, cities, and wards throughout Japan. Data were gathered primarily from local government websites. On the basis of the data, 82.6% of local governments seek organizations that will manage libraries through public offerings. This observation indicates a competitive environment. However, the number of organizations applying to manage public libraries has been decreasing over time. In FY2018, there was only 1 applicant to approximately 70% of all public offerings. A specific library-related company occupies approximately 40% of the market share. It seems that the market has been gradually monopolized by one company. More than 80% of the organizations continue to manage in the subsequent period of management. That means many libraries are continuously managed by the same organization. A change in the managing organizations is observed between the library-related companies that are active nationwide.