J. Willard Marriott Library

What J. Willard Marriott Library does

The J. Willard Marriott Library is the main campus library of the University of Utah, a public research university in Salt Lake City founded in 1850 as the University of Deseret and a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU). The library serves the institution's 38,000+ enrolled students, faculty, and researchers by providing access to scholarly collections, digital learning resources, research databases, study spaces, and equipment loans including laptops and hotspots. It is named after J. Willard Marriott, founder of the Marriott Corporation, in recognition of his contribution to the university.

The library operates within the University of Utah's broader IT and administrative ecosystem, which is managed by University Information Technology (UIT) and University Support Services (USS). Underlying technology components include the Canvas learning management system, the CIS employee self-service portal, PeopleSoft ERP, ServiceNow-based IT service management, Duo two-factor authentication, Box/UBox cloud storage (1TB per user), Eduroam global research roaming, and managed print services via PaperCut. The library also participates in the university's AI Office, which provides institutional AI policy and tool guidance. In July 2026, the library announced a $4 million collections expansion covering new learning resources, data tools, and scholarly materials.

The library is not a revenue-generating business. It is a department of a state-funded public university under the Utah System of Higher Education, funded through state appropriations, student fees, and private donations, with services provided at no direct cost to students, faculty, and staff. There are no commercial customers, no external pricing, no independent revenue stream, and no venture, private equity, or individual ownership interests. Geographic scope is primarily Salt Lake City, with a secondary international footprint via the university's Asia Campus in Incheon, South Korea.

Name

J. Willard Marriott Library

Legal name

The University of Utah

Website

https://utah.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1850

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The J. Willard Marriott Library is the main academic research library of the University of Utah, serving 38,000+ students, faculty, and researchers with scholarly collections, digital learning resources, research databases, and study spaces, funded by state appropriations rather than commercial revenue.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Library Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAEAGAB

Academic & Research Library Operations (College/University Libraries)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYEDAEAGAL

Library User Services & Information Support (Reference, Research Help, Instruction Support)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYEDAEAGAF

Digital Library & Electronic Resources Operations (e-Resources, Repositories, Licensing)

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

SECONDARYEDAEAGAK

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) & Resource Sharing Operations

Education/Education Facilities & Support Services/Library, Media Center & Learning Space Operations

Keywords

• Academic library services
• Scholarly research collections
• Digital learning resources
• University research support
• Library collections access

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

The J. Willard Marriott Library is the main research library of the University of Utah, providing access to scholarly collections, research databases, digital learning resources, study spaces, and laptop/hotspot loans to support academic study, research, and remote learning for students, faculty, and researchers. The library is funded through university appropriations and state funding and provides its services at no direct cost to University of Utah students, faculty, and staff.

Product overview

The University of Utah's J. Willard Marriott Library operates within a comprehensive university IT ecosystem managed by University Information Technology (UIT) and University Support Services (USS). The services portfolio includes core IT infrastructure (campus WiFi networks including UConnect, UGuest, ULink, and Eduroam; VPN access via Palo Alto GlobalProtect), communication and collaboration tools (Microsoft 365/UMail with Teams, Google Workspace, Zoom, Box/UBox cloud storage), security services (Duo two-factor authentication, Information Security Office with KnowBe4 phishing training), and administrative systems (Campus Information Services/CIS portal, PeopleSoft ERP, ServiceNow IT Service Catalog). The Web Support & Usability team provides content management through Modern Campus CMS, FormAssembly, and Trumba calendaring. Managed Print Services offers RedPrint cloud printing via PaperCut across 10+ campus buildings. Additional offerings include the Software Catalog and Office of Software Licensing for discounted software (MATLAB, Qualtrics, Adobe, LabArchives), IT Knowledge Base for self-service support, and specialized guides for students, faculty, staff, and IT professionals. The AI Office provides guidance on AI policies and tools, while the Center for High Performance Computing supports research computing needs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Library Collections Access
• Research Database Access

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration25 records

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• HathiTrust: HathiTrust is a digital preservation repository and large-scale book digitization collaborative used by academic libraries including most U.S. research universities. Comparable as a shared digital preservation and access infrastructure that complements (and competes with) in-house library digitization efforts.

Direct peers

• Ex Libris (Clarivate): Ex Libris, part of Clarivate, provides library management systems (Alma, Primo) used by academic libraries worldwide. Highly comparable as a provider of the core library services platform that powers academic research libraries including the Marriott Library's peers.
• ProQuest / Clarivate Academic: ProQuest, now part of Clarivate, provides academic research databases, ebook platforms, and dissertations/theses content used heavily by university libraries. Directly comparable as a major provider of the scholarly content and databases the Marriott Library licenses for its user base.
• JSTOR: JSTOR operates a major digital library of academic journals, books, and primary sources used by virtually all U.S. research universities. Directly comparable as a digital scholarly archive that supplements the Marriott Library's own electronic collections.
• OCLC: OCLC is a global library cooperative that operates WorldCat, the world's largest library catalog, and provides shared cataloging, resource sharing (ILL), and discovery services. Directly comparable as the backbone infrastructure provider for academic library operations and interlibrary loan.
• EBSCO Information Services: EBSCO provides research databases (EBSCOhost), discovery services, and ejournal/e-book platforms to academic libraries globally. Comparable as a primary vendor of the subscription databases, discovery layer, and full-text content used by research libraries.

Broad incumbents

• Stanford Libraries: Stanford Libraries serve Stanford University with deep collections in digital humanities and high-end research support. Comparable as an AAU Tier 1 research library with significantly larger endowment resources and a similar AAU research mission.
• Harvard Library: Harvard Library is the central library system of Harvard University, the oldest and one of the largest academic library systems in the U.S. Comparable as a peer AAU research library with far greater scale and endowment resources, but operating with a similar mission of supporting research and teaching at a Tier 1 institution.
• MIT Libraries: MIT Libraries serve the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and are widely regarded as a leader in digital library services and open scholarship. Comparable as an AAU peer research library, with deeper technology investment but a smaller student body than the Marriott Library's 38,000+ users.

Regional players

• Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Library Consortium: The BTAA Open Libraries program provides a shared pool of over 40 million items across Big Ten member libraries, enabling consortium-wide borrowing and shared infrastructure. Relevant because the Marriott Library is not part of such a consortium, while peer research universities increasingly leverage these networks for resource sharing and licensing leverage.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/uutah
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/theuniversityofutah
• Facebookfacebook.com/universityofutah
• Instagraminstagram.com/universityofutah
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/j-willard-marriott-library

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about J. Willard Marriott Library