Will Textbook Rental be a Flash in the Pan?

Posted on 29. Jan, 2010 by admin in Advertising, Business Models, Techonolgy

What a difference a week makes.  Last week, the buzz was all about the rental textbook market.  How Barnes & Noble’s entry into this sector legitimized it’s business model and how Chegg.com ramped up it’s efforts to capture market share and solidify itself as the leader through a sizable advertising expenditure.  However, on Wednesday, Apple revealed the iPad that promises to breath life back into traditional media such as newspapers, magazines and books, but only in doing so by moving it into the digital space.  So how long will it take for textbooks to be offered through Apple’s App Store?  How long will it take for students to adopt the iPad?  How much longer will the textbook (rental and purchase) market even exist?  Where will Chegg, Follet, Barnes & Noble and the like find themselves in 3, 5, or 10 years?  After all, as digital stragetist Michael Leis states, “the iPad literally takes twenty pounds off the backs of high school and college kids if their textbooks are all available through the app store. And why wouldn’t publishers put their books in the App store? The audience is already there and ready to one-click all the bookstore hassle away.”  Will this textbook rental business model be a flash-in-the-pan?

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  • The iPad is an Epic Fail. Textbook rental is here to stay.
  • I think it's just a matter of time. Adoption may not come with this first generation iPad but colleges like Abilene Christian University are certainly committed to exploring how develop mobile learning capabilities. Keep an eye on them.

    Abilene Christian University with their ongoing relationship with Apple will be the first to publish their student newspaper on the iPad...here is the press release: http://ow.ly/11ntC and here is the Campus Technology article on ACU's overall efforts in exploring mobile learning: http://ow.ly/11nqq
  • Angela Richards
    Chegg.com is awesome. I've used them since last year and I've saved over $1000. Also, if you use coupon code: CC100221, you'll get 11% off your entire order. 11% coupon expires on 2/8/10. After 2/8/10, the coupon will be 5% off. Hope this helps you save some money!
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