Central and University Library Lucerne

What Central and University Library Lucerne does

The Zentral- und Hochschulbibliothek Luzern (ZHB Luzern) is a publicly funded cantonal and university library serving the Canton of Lucerne, Switzerland, founded in 1951 and operated under the Canton of Lucerne's Department of Culture (Dienststelle Kultur). It operates three primary branch locations — Sempacherstrasse (headquarters), Uni/PH-Gebäude, and HSLU Design Film Kunst in Emmenbrücke — plus multiple HSLU campus branches, providing over 670 workspaces and access to approximately 300,000 print media items alongside extensive licensed electronic resources. The institution serves a dual constituency: the academic community (students, doctoral candidates, and faculty of the University of Lucerne, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts (HSLU), and three pedagogical universities — PH Luzern, PH Zug, PH Schwyz) and the general public of the Canton of Lucerne.

Its service portfolio is structured around three tiers of electronic resource access — institutional e-media for HSLU and Uni/PH constituents, and a general public tier offering DiBiZentral (German e-books/audiobooks), OverDrive (English/Spanish/French), PressReader (international newspapers from 90+ countries), filmfriend (2,000+ streaming titles), and LinkedIn Learning — supported by the swisscovery RZS unified catalog operated via the Swiss Library Service Plattform (SLSP). Core technical components include Rauminfo real-time workspace availability (V:SCOUT wireless sensors), anny room booking software, the LORY institutional repository (Zenodo-based) for Lucerne universities, the LARA cultural heritage repository, and ZentralGut, a digital portal for Lucerne cultural heritage including the digitized Luzerner Tagblatt (1852–1991) and Vaterland (1833–1963) newspapers and a ~3,500-photograph portrait collection. The public-facing website runs on the open-source Neos CMS with Matomo analytics (no commercial tracking).

The library is not a commercial entity. All core services — borrowing, reading rooms, Wi-Fi, e-resources, and cultural programs — are free to registered users and the public; the only fees disclosed are CHF 45 for lost locker keys and CHF 1.00 per newspaper copy. Operating budgets are provided by the Canton of Lucerne (subscription-style recurring cantonal allocation), and consortium-negotiated e-resource pricing is secured through the Swiss Library Service Plattform (SLSP) and swissuniversities Read & Publish agreements, most recently with Springer Nature in June 2026 (covering ~2,200 Springer journals, ~40 Nature titles, Gold OA rights in ~700 journals, and AI usage terms). Strategic partnerships span SLSP for shared catalog infrastructure, the Konsortium der Schweizer Hochschulbibliotheken for national licenses, Stadtbibliothek Luzern for cultural programming, the HelloWelcome refugee organization for exhibitions, and a social-enterprise hospitality partner (Wärchbrogg) operating the on-site bistro.

Name

Central and University Library Lucerne

Legal name

Zentral- und Hochschulbibliothek Luzern

Website

https://zhbluzern.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1951

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The ZHB Luzern is a publicly funded cantonal and university library serving the Canton of Lucerne, providing free academic and public library services to the University of Lucerne, HSLU, three pedagogical universities, and the general public across three physical branches and extensive digital platforms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Libraries and Archives (519210)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF)

Keywords

• Academic library services
• Public library services
• E-resource licensing
• Research data management
• Open science publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Luzern, LU

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Cantonal Government Funding: The ZHB Luzern is a publicly funded institution under the Department of Culture of the Canton of Lucern (Dienststelle Kultur). Its operating budget is provided by the Canton of Lucerne, making it a government-funded public library rather than a revenue-generating entity.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The ZHB Luzern is a cantonal public and academic library providing free access to print and digital media collections, study workspaces, research support, and Open Science services for university affiliates and the general public across three branches in Lucerne. It licenses e-journals, e-books, databases, streaming media, and digital newspapers through consortium agreements, and operates institutional repositories, Research Data Management, Open Access publishing support, and cultural heritage preservation services for the Lucerne region.

Product overview

The Zentral- und Hochschulbibliothek Luzern (ZHB) is a multi-location public and academic library serving the Lucerne canton. Its product portfolio centers on three tiers of electronic resource access (E-Medien): a general public tier (E-Medien für alle) offering e-books, streaming media, and newspapers via DiBiZentral, OverDrive, PressReader, filmfriend, and LinkedIn Learning; institutional tiers for HSLU (University of Applied Sciences) and Uni/PH (University and Teacher Education) providing access to licensed e-journals, e-books, and databases via VPN; and cross-institutional discovery through the swisscovery RZS catalog. Supporting infrastructure includes Rauminfo (real-time workspace availability), anny (room booking), LORY and LARA (open access repositories), Research Data Management services, and Open Access publishing support including Read & Publish agreements.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• E-Medien Uni/PH
• E-Medien HSLU
• E-Medien für alle ZHB-Nutzenden
• filmfriend Streaming Service
• DiBiZentral (Onleihe) Digital Library
• OverDrive (Libby) Digital Library
• PressReader Newstand
• LinkedIn Learning
• swisscovery RZS Catalog
• Rauminfo (V:SCOUT) Workspace Availability
• anny Room Booking Service
• LORY Institutional Repository
• LARA Cultural Heritage Repository
• Research Data Management (RDM) Service
• Open Access Publishing Support
• ZentralGut Cultural Heritage Portal
• Sondersammlung Special Collections
• Lucernensia Regional Collection
• Bibliothekseinführungen (Library Introductions)
• Datenbankinfosystem (DBIS)

Quantifiable outcome

• 670+ study workspaces available across Uni/PH-Gebäude and Sempacherstrasse locations
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration20 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• swissuniversities / Springer NaturecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 June 2026On June 10, 2026, swissuniversities (on behalf of ZHB Luzern and other Swiss universities) signed a new Read & Publish agreement with Springer Nature. The agreement covers full reading access to ~2,200 Springer journals and Nature branded journals, Open Access publishing rights in Springer and Nature journals (~2,000 and ~40 journals respectively), and publication in approximately 700 Gold Open Access journals including all BMC titles. It also covers AI usage terms for licensed content.
• Swiss Library Service Plattform (SLSP)coreTechnology or IntegrationSLSP operates the swisscovery RZS platform, the unified discovery system and inter-library loan network used by the ZHB and other Swiss academic libraries. The ZHB's catalog, user accounts, and resource sharing are all managed through SLSP's infrastructure.
• University of LuzernminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Luzern manages the Zoom and Microsoft Teams video conferencing solutions used by ZHB for digital events and Open Science workshops. The University has signed Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) with both providers in compliance with Swiss data protection regulations. ZHB uses these platforms for its Open Science Unlocked courses, RDM workshops, and other digital events.
• Stadtbibliothek LuzernminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerZHB Luzern co-organizes cultural events with Stadtbibliothek Luzern. Notably, the Erzählcafé series ('Essen über alles' on September 3, 2026) is a joint event, with Stadtbibliothek providing the venue (Löwenplatz 10) and ZHB co-hosting and promoting.
• Wärchbrogg (social enterprise)minorOthersThe Wärchbrogg social enterprise operates the Bistro Wärchbrogg at the Sempacherstrasse location in the Vögeligärtli park. The bistro serves hot and cold beverages and a selection of soups, salads, and cakes from regional producers. Students with a valid ID receive a discount. Revenue supports Wärchbrogg's mission of providing employment and training for people with disabilities.
• HelloWelcome (Refugee Welcome Organization)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerZHB is hosting the portrait exhibition 'Geschichten vom Ankommen' (Stories of Arrival) from February to November 2026 in the Katalogsaal. The exhibition, organized by HelloWelcome, presents the stories of ten refugees who arrived in Lucerne, with portraits and personal narratives accessible via QR codes. The exhibition runs through October 2026.
• Consortium of Swiss Academic Libraries (Konsortium der Schweizer Hochschulbibliotheken)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe ZHB participates in the national consortium that negotiates nationallizenzen (national licenses) on behalf of Swiss academic libraries, providing access to De Gruyter, Springer, Oxford University Press, and Cambridge University Press journal archives. Cochrane Library is also available via a national license managed through the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Zentralbibliothek Zürich: Cantonal and university library of Zürich serving the University of Zürich and ETH Zürich-affiliated users. Direct functional peer with overlapping swisscovery, SLSP, and consortium participation, though at materially larger scale.
• Zentral- und Hochschulbibliothek Bern: Central and university library for the Canton of Bern and University of Bern. Operates under an almost identical cantonal-plus-university hybrid model with comparable services (swisscovery catalog, special collections, Open Science), making it the closest structural peer to ZHB Luzern.
• Bibliothèque cantonale et universitaire (BCU) Lausanne: Cantonal and university library for Canton de Vaud and University of Lausanne. Operates the same cantonal-academic hybrid model with swisscovery, special collections (BCU Riponne, BCU Dorigny), and French-language services, making it a strong francophone functional peer.
• Universitätsbibliothek Basel: University library of the University of Basel serving a cantonal academic community. Comparable in function (hybrid public-academic library, swisscovery catalog, special collections, Open Access services) though Basel benefits from a larger and older research university.

Others

• Swiss Library Service Plattform (SLSP): National consortium operating the swisscovery discovery platform and shared infrastructure used by all Swiss academic libraries including ZHB Luzern. Not a competitor but a strategic infrastructure and consortium partner whose roadmap directly shapes ZHB's service capabilities.

Broad incumbents

• Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (BSB): Major German state and university library with extensive digital collections, cultural heritage portals, and Open Access services. Comparable in scale and scope of cultural heritage and special collection digitization, though serving a much larger catchment.
• ETH-Bibliothek Zürich: Library of ETH Zürich, one of Switzerland's two federal institutes of technology. A larger and more research-intensive peer with significantly deeper e-resource licensing and a stronger focus on STEM collections than ZHB Luzern.

Regional players

• Stadtbibliothek Luzern: Municipal public library of the City of Lucerne, which ZHB co-organizes cultural events with (e.g., Erzählcafé series). Distinct in scope (city-focused, no university research mission) but directly complementary in serving Lucerne residents.
• Hauptbibliothek Universität St. Gallen: University library serving the University of St. Gallen in Eastern Switzerland. Comparable in scale and swisscovery participation, but serves a different canton and lacks ZHB's strong cantonal-public-library hybrid mandate.
• Réseau des bibliothèques de Suisse occidentale (RERO): Library network for Western Switzerland covering cantonal and university libraries across French-speaking cantons. Comparable consortium infrastructure peer to SLSP for ZHB Luzern, serving as a parallel model in another linguistic region.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/zhbluzern

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles22 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Central and University Library Lucerne