Previously every paperback carried the message "FOR THE FORCES – Leave this book at a Post Office when you have read it, so that men and women in the Services may enjoy it too" at the bottom of the back cover inviting the reader to take advantage of the free transmission of books to the forces by the Post Office. However, demand was exceeding supply on the home front, leading Lane to seek a monopoly on army books made specifically for overseas distribution. This dominance over the paper supply put Penguin in an especially strong position after the war as rationing continued. Many of its competitors were forced to concede paperback reprint rights to Penguin for this reason as well as the popular prestige the company enjoyed.