Rising Textbook Costs: Can New Technology Help?
by
Bryce J. Jones*
Katherine L. Jackson**
I. Introduction
The cost of college textbooks, the frequency of new editions, and the bundling of texts with other
materials have increasingly been the subject of recent controversy. Even Congress has stepped into the fray
with legislation that requires colleges and universities to post textbook information online. After teaching
business law and legal environment courses, many faculty are disenchanted with the selection of available
textbooks. Some textbooks are too easy for average or good students while some are comprehensive
enough for law students. In addition, the vast majority of textbooks come with a multitude of supplements
that were often underutilized. Perhaps this is because study guides and test bank questions (and answers)
are frequently overly detailed and poorly written.
The retail price of a typical new business law textbook runs from $100 to $200. This is especially
burdensome for students because many of the $200 books contain enough material for two classes while the
typical curriculum only requires that the student take one course. In recent years, publishers have attempted
to address this problem via less expensive custom-made books (which may, for example, extract those
chapters not relevant to the particular course). These custom made books are typically in the $100 range.
The New York Times recently estimated that the yearly cost to students for textbooks is $700-9001
though that seems low given students will typically have to buy some new editions at $200 a book (unless
of course they can rent—in which case, the book would probably rent for $100). Rental programs have
become more popular across many colleges and universities, but questions arise as to how expensive they
are to set up and whether students still are paying large amounts of money even to rent.
New e-readers have the potential to lower these costs. Beyond the cost of the e-reader, there are
substantial cost savings to the publisher and the retailer; these savings can be passed on to the student.
Electronic readers have caught on with many publishers, book retailers, and readers with the use of models
such as the Nook, the Kindle, and the iPad (as well as e-readers from Sony and Borders). Amazon (with
their Kindle earlier) tried to lower the price of most new regular books (that is, novels and non-fiction
books--not necessarily textbooks) to $9.95. Some publishers balked and were able to force prices higher (to
$15 and sometimes $20).
The paper will examine each of these solutions and their impact on the students’ pocketbook for
textbooks. Can the new e-reader technology help with these cost problems? Are there other problems with
the textbook situation?
1
Lisa W. Foderado, In a Digital Age, Students Still Cling to to Paper Textbooks, NEW YORK TIMES, Oct. 20, 2010, at A18.
* Bryce J. Jones, J.D., Ph.D., Professor of Business Administration, Truman State University,
Kirksville, MO 63501. email: brycej@truman.edu
**Katherine L. Jackson, Ph.D., Associate Dean, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO 63501.
email: kjackson@truman.edu
II. A Broken Model for Picking Texts
The current model for choosing textbooks is problematic. Imagine an economy where other
people chose what goods and services you could buy. This would mean that users (buyers) would
neither receive the benefits of nor the efficiencies inherent in a capitalist supply-and-demand structure.
Even more than that, users may find features they do not want or elements that are absent. This
argument is somewhat flawed when applied to textbooks because presumably students are not
equipped with the knowledge to make the selection. However, a problem still exists because the
faculty member who makes the selection receives a complimentary copy, and it is not uncommon for
faculty to have little knowledge of the price of the textbooks they select. Publishers, who are aware of
this fact, may have little incentive to keep costs reasonable.
In general, publishers revise college textbooks about every three years. After the first year of
publication, the secondary market of used textbooks flood sales outlets with enough used copies to
impact the sale of new editions. Because publishers make no money on the sale of used textbooks, they
will print a new edition and discontinue sales of the previous edition. Bookstores, of course, will not
buy back texts that have been discontinued. Students are typically told by faculty to buy the latest
edition, and even if they occasionally tell the students that they can buy the older edition, students may
have difficulty finding it because bookstores do not typically have older editions.2 While currency of
material may arguably be a motivator for the publisher to print an updated version, the typical update
has only marginal value to the student.
Upon publication of the 13th edition of Shakespeare, one parent took issue with whether the playwright
was still revising his works.This is what prompts students and parents to bemoan the price of textbooks
although their complaints typically go unheeded.
One option to outright purchase is to rent textbooks. While this may lessen the cost, rental
agreements often have restrictions on how the students may use the book. It certainly reduces the
likelihood that a student will keep, or even be allowed to keep, the book for future reference. It is
costly for universities to set up rental textbook systems though more are under pressure to do so. But
because of increasing pressure, it is being reported that 1500 campus bookstores are now offering some
type of rental plan (though perhaps not for all texts).3
While the student may not be able to find old editions in bookstores, they may be able to find them
on the Internet. One of the authors told his students that they could use the 13th edition of a business
law book rather than the current 14th edition. The 14th edition cost nearly $200 new, but the 13th
edition was found for as little as $3 though typically the price was $20 to $30. The differences
between the new and old edition were largely cosmetic. The biggest difference was in the bankruptcy
chapter because Congree had revised bankruptcy laws. However, by the second year of use of the
“current” 14th edition, big parts of the bankruptcy chapter were out of date with numerical amounts that
change based on the cost of living every three years. As for the rest of the book, changes were few.
For example, basic contract law does not change all that often. The faculty member could give the
students the changes.
3
Laura Bruno, Get college textbooks for less by renting instead of buying,” USA TODAY, Aug. 17,
2010, www.usatoday.com/news/edudcation/2010-08-17-RentingTextbooks; Eric Gorsky, New Law, ebooks and rentals may make college textbooks less costly, USA Today, Aug. 8, 2010,
www.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-08-07-college-textbooks . A more recent article in the New
2
2
A second and growing alternative to purchasing is to make textbooks into e-books. While this
obviously cuts the cost, problems still linger. There are a multitude of legal issues in terms of
copyright ownership, as well as publishers’ fears of a Napster-like sharing of content that would
diminish their profit margins. The cost of individual devices (such as an iPad) for each student may be
prohibitive and yet if the e-book is on a regular desktop or laptop computer, it requires the student to
read a large amount from their monitor which could tie up computer labs across campus, confine the
student to one location, or require the students to read from their own computer. At our university,
when we were looking at reducing the costs of texts, some students were vehemently opposed at
having to read from a computer. A large editorial appeared in the student newspaper calling this
option a misguided alternative. According to an article in the Chronicle for Higher Education, “for an
e-book reader to take off in the textbook market, a standard will need to emerge, so that digital formats
do not feel like extra homework for professors and students.”4
E-book readers (such as the Kindle, Nook, or iPad) may now be popular, but for now these
devices do not appear to be a completely viable solution to cutting costs and serving as a complete
substitute for textbooks. Still the e-book readers are the wave of the future. For example, at Stanford
Medical School, all of the entering students receive an iPad with all of their textbooks on it. The total
cost is only slightly more than a print version.5 Equipping students with e-readers (such as the iPad) at
larger universities such as Cornell, Princeton, and George Washington has caused some problems with
network stability, connectivity, and bandwidth. Other colleges have not had such problems. Still
adding the cost of an iPad to the cost of texts has increased costs to students.6
While ebook readers may well become the norm for the future, at present they possess some
characteristics that may discourage immediate usage. While the Amazon’s Kindle, and the Barnes and
Noble’s Nook are small and easy to handle (which is important for reading), they lack color and their
ability to highlight is somewhat difficult. The iPad has the advantage of having a bigger screen and
color (besides having other abilities), but its size and weight poses a problem in holding for a
considerable length of time. Some students have reported that because of the iPad’s ability to use the
Internet, students are finding themselves easily distracted; they find themselves off to their email or
Facebook page. Another problem for ebook texts is the ability to easily flip between non-consecutive
pages (which is often necessary for some books with homework problems where a student may want to
immediately reference some earlier pages).7
York Times has increased the number of colleges renting from 1500 to 2000. Lisa W. Forderado, In a
Digital Age, Students Still Cling to Paper Textboooks, NEW YORK TIMES, Oct. 20, 2010, at A18.
4
Jeff Young, Professor Faces Obstacles in Testing E-reader Device for Digital Textbooks,
CHRONICLE FOR HIGHER EDUCATION, Jan. 7, 2010, http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/professorfaces-obstacles-in-testing-e-reader-device-for-digital-textbooks/19415 .
5
Editor, iPad News: Stanford Med School Replaces Textbooks with iPads, IPAD NEWS, Aug. 16,
2010, www.ipad.net/ipad-news-stanford-med-school-replaces-textbooks .
6
Melissa Korn, IPad Struggles at Some Colleges, WALL ST. J., Sep. 9, 2010,
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB100014240527487035944045751923 .
7
Mary Beth Marklein, Can college students learn as well on iPads, e-books?, USA TODAY, Aug. 10,
2010, www.usatoday.com/news/education/2010-08-10-ebooklearning .
3
The following is a comparison of some current ebook readers (in their least expensive form).
Name
Size
Weight
Screen Size
Color Cost
Amazon Kindle III
7.5”x4.8”x0.335”
.5 oz.
6”
No
$1398
18.9 oz.
9.7”
No
$3799
Amazon Kindle DX 10.4”x7.2”x0.38”
Apple iPad
9.56”x7.47”x0.5”
21 oz.
9.7”
Yes
$49910
B&N Nook
7.7”x4.9”x0.5”
11.6 oz.
6”
No
$14911
B&N Nook Color
8.1”x5x0.48”
15.8 oz.
7”
Yes
$24012
Of course many other features may be important such as the amount of memory, the number of
books available, and the types of e-book formats that can be used natively or with “apps.”
In the authors’ opinion, color and screen size are points in favor of the iPad. On the other hand,
the Kindle (not the DX) has an advantage in terms of total size and weight. Perhaps the Kindle has an
advantage in terms of the number of books available (though this might not include a textbook
advanatage.) More information in regard to making textbooks appropriately formatted for these ebook readers will be given later.
III. Cost of Textbooks
According to the New York Times in October 2010, the price of textbooks has risen four times the
cost of living.13 The following studies have shown this to be a significant problem.
A. GAO Report
A 2005 General Accounting Office report found that textbook prices had increased 186%
between 1986 and 2004 while general inflation had risen only 72%. To be sure, this was not the only
8
http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Wireless-Reader-WifiGraphite/dp/B002Y27P3M/ref=amb_link_354201942_4?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=cen
ter-1&pf_rd_r=1ATKH44H32KQ08RJS9C6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1277208482&pf_rd_i=507846
9
http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Wireless-Reader-WifiGraphite/dp/B002Y27P3M/ref=amb_link_354201942_4?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=cen
ter-1&pf_rd_r=1ATKH44H32KQ08RJS9C6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1277208482&pf_rd_i=507846
10
http://www.apple.com/ipad/specs/
11
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nook/features/techspecs/index.asp ;
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/kindle-vs-sony-reader-vs-nook.html
12
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nookcolor/features/techspecs/index.asp?cds2Pid=35607
13
Foderaro, supra note 1, at A19.
4
rising cost to students as tuition and fees went up 240% during that same time period.14 The report
cited several factors for the rise in textbook costs. First, the GAO said that there was increasing
demand for products that accompanied the textbooks such as cd-roms, web-based tutorials, and self–
assessment tools (though it might be asked whether the demand was from students, faculty, or from
textbook publishers—relative to the authors). Second, the report indicated that the revision cycle for
textbooks had gone from 3-4 years–down from 4-5 years twenty years ago.15 A question arises
whether the depth of revisions requires the publication of an entirely new edition. For instance, law
book publishers frequently update with pocket parts that are much less expensive than buying a
completely new book.
The GAO report also indicated that identical textbooks are sold in other countries at lower
prices. According to publishers, the cost of printing and selling book overseas is less expensive and
that they base price on local market conditions and competition.16 To compound the matter, publishers
have strong contractual relations with their overseas partners to prevent them from bringing the lowercost texts back into the U.S.17 This scenario is not dissimilar to prescription drug manufacturers who
try to make it difficult for U.S. citizens to purchase bargain-priced drugs from Canada or other
countries. Third, the GAO cited the consolidation of textbook publishers in the U.S. as another factor
for the rising costs. In 2004, five publishers controlled 80% of the textbook market.18
GAO also disclosed that students often were unable to purchase used textbooks. The sale of
used books comprises 25%-30% of the market. Oftentimes faculty send their textbook selections to
the bookstore late or decide to switch to a newer edition at the last minute both of which compounds
the problem.19 Students can sometimes resell the book to the bookstore, but only if it is in good
condition, the bookstore knows that the faculty member will use the same textbook the following
semester, and there is no new edition.20
The GAO revealed that retail bookstores would typically sell new texts at a 25% margin and
used books at a 33% margin.21 Retailers reported that bundling of supplements with texts had become
more prevalent and that it was difficult to get texts without supplements.22 Concerns about the reduced
revision cycle were expressed, though the publishers claim that demand for revisions came from the
instructors. Still an example was reported of mathematics and physic professors who petitioned a
publisher not to revise texts. Once a publisher prints a new edition and disseminates it to the
marketplace, the price of the older edition falls to close to zero.23 With such a low price, perhaps this
might make the book more attractive to buyers, but if faculty do not “allow” older editions, the older
versions will die. A few publishers may allow some of their books to be sold with the faculty member
picking the particular chapters that they want to be included. and this can reduce the price. For
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
General Accounting Office, COLLEGE TEXTBOOKS, July 2005, www.gao.gov/new.items/d05806.pdf .
Id. at 3.
Id.
Id. at 4, 24-25.
Id. at 5.
Id at 7
Id. at 8.
Id. at 13.
Id. at 16.
Id. at 18.
5
example, many business law textbooks have enough material to cover two classes; a custom-made text
may be able to cut the size of the text substantially. While custom publishing reduces students’ initial
investment it severely limits their ability to resell their books.24
b. Other Economic Studies
One economic study was done by Carbaugh and Ghosh in 2005.25 The authors found that
significant merger activity had changed the textbook publishing market into an oligopoly. 26 The
authors estimated that the sale of a $100 textbook generates about $7.10 in profits for the publisher,
$11.60 in royalties to the authors and $4.50 in revenue for the bookstore retailer.27
In alignment with the GAO report findings, the authors also documented that publishers were
selling books in foreign markets at substantially lower prices. For example, in the United Kingdom,
the authors reveal that prices were half or less and in countries such as Taiwan, Malaysia, and
Singapore the prices were even lower.28 As noted earlier, U.S. publishers have tried to stop the
reimportation of such books.29
As to whether the mergers in the textbook industry have resulted in a net gain or loss in welfare
is difficult to ascertain. Mergers have a positive effect when they realize efficiencies of cost reductions
and the ability to enter new markets. On the other hand, welfare may be harmed by the ability of a few
firms to raise prices.30 Since the mid-1990s, prices of texts to bookstores have risen 50% while overall
producer prices have risen only 10% in the U.S.31 Publishers claim that the increase in prices have
resulted from instructor demand for additional supplements and services.32 (But this is far from clear:
Some faculty may like and use the supplements but some may not. And whether the supplements are
used by the students is not clear. These certainly add to the cost substantially.) While the authors are
reluctant to draw any firm conclusion, they do say that it is clear the publishing industry has gained a
reputation of moving to an oligopoly accompanied by higher prices and weak antitrust oversight.33
Another more detailed report on textbook prices came out in September 2006 from the
Education Department done by James V. Koch, Professor of Economics at Old Dominion University.34
The chief question examined was why textbooks prices were rising so quickly. The author
immediately emphasized the point made earlier that those who select the textbook are not the buyers:
24.
Id. at 20.
Robert Carbaugh and Koushik Ghosh, Are College Textbooks Price Fairly, 48 CHALLENGE, SeptOct. No. 5, at 95.
26.
Id. at 96-97.
27.
Id. at 99.
28.
Id. at 100.
29.
Id. at 102.
30.
Id. at 103.
31.
Id. at 104.
32.
Id. at 105.
33.
Id. at 106.
34.
Dr. James V. Koch, An Economic Analysis of Textbook Pricing and Textbook Markets, U.S.
Department of Education, Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance,
www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/acsfa/edlite-txtbkstudy.html .
6
25.
“students end up being coerced to pay for someone else’s choices.”35 He determined that 90% of the
faculty make individual choices on textbooks. In a Connecticut study, it was found that only 58% of
the faculty were aware of the costs of textbooks and that only 43% make their textbook selection based
on costs.36 Tremendous price differentials existed between the U.S. and foreign markets. For
example, he found a standard economics text by Krugman and Wells cost $126 in the U.S. and only
$76 in Great Britain. In addition, he discovered that publishers had contractually attempted to stop the
reimportation of texts although a few resourceful students were able circumvent the ban.37
Koch ascertained that the demand for texts was inelastic (i.e., not very sensitive to price
increases). With an inelasticity of -0.2, a ten percent price increase would mean a decline in purchases
of texts of only two percent.38 Thus, inelastic demand makes it easier for purchasers to increase prices.
On the supply side, Koch also found the textbook market to be an oligopoly where only five publishers
controlled 80% of the market. Such markets “are characterized by elevated prices relative to costs.”
Textbook wholesalers/distributors are also an oligopoly, with only four dominating the market.39
Because new editions in effect destroy the market for earlier editions, Koch determined that
publishers have the incentive to have a short cycle for revisions: the highest sales are in the first year of
the new edition. This is in contrast to the car industry where a new car model does not eliminate the
demand for used cars.40
Colleges and universities have a stake in the high price of textbooks because more than half of
them own their bookstores and most of the rest get a percentage of sales when the college or university
contracts with a private entity to run the bookstore (e.g., Barnes and Noble). Koch does admit that it is
not completely fair to compare the prices today to those of 20 years ago because of the change in the
product. In the past the only product was the textbook and today the product is a combination of the
text along with their various supplements such as cd-roms.41 Koch said it was unknown whether the
ancillary materials were actually enhancing learning. He did say that students are actively using the
Internet to reduce their costs and that bookstores have noticed this in their sales.42 Perhaps the rise in
the price of textbooks as part of the total cost of a college education has been a factor in colleges and
universities employing more part-time instructors whose salaries are well below that of full-time
faculty members. In 2003, 43% of instructors were part time compared to 33% in 1987 (according to
the U.S. Department of Education).43 While this causality would be difficult to affirm, textbook prices
have increased the cost of obtaining a college education.
Koch is skeptical of the economy of electronic books because students cannot resell the books
35.
Id. at 2.
Id. at 3 (citing Board of Governors for Higher Education, Department of Higher Education, State of
Connecticut, A REPORT TO JOINT STANDING COMMITTEE OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, Section 70,
2006).
37.
Id. at 4.
38.
Id.
39.
Id. at 6.
40.
Id. at 7.
41.
Id. at 8.
42.
Id. at 10-11.
43.
Id. at 9.
7
36.
and typically cannot use them after a number of months.44 He does find that rental systems can
conceivably cut the price of textbooks in half. There are two large barriers to a rental system. One is
the tremendous cost in establishing the system. A 2004 Illinois Board of Higher Education report said
that it would cost between $2.68 million and $15.93 million. Also universities would be cutting a
significant revenue stream as noted earlier (from revenue from their bookstores).45
Koch has a number of recommendations–some of which would require voluntary action and
some of which would require legislation. He recommended that students and faculty demand that
publishers come out with new editions less frequently. He also recommended that publishers unbundle
textbooks from their supplementary materials so students could purchase them separately. He also
says that publishers should eliminate reimportation contracts and goes on to say that there are reasons
to believe that the practices are currently illegal.46
Koch has a number of recommendations:
1. Publish a list of textbooks on the university internet sites which would make it possible for
students to search for the best prices;
2. Establish non-profit campus bookstores (e.g., Montana, Oregon, Texas, UCLA and
Wisconsin) although he acknowledges that this course of action would result in a loss of revenue for
the universities.
3. Move to a textbook rental system. This is a highly capital-intensive strategy and would
present a problem for many universities who may not be able to afford such an investment in this
economy.
4. Have faculty choose texts early and recommend multiple texts.
5. Make use of the same text for multiple years, including using earlier editions of texts.
Already some states, such as Connecticut, require publishers to inform professors of prices of
textbooks. Virginia compels its colleges and universities to formulate a list of textbooks to be
published online. In addition, the state encourages publishers to unbundle their offerings and advocates
putting textbook copies in university libraries.47
Koch is reticent about extensive federal action and is against price controls although he would
consider basing some funding (or reduced funding) to encourage renting, unbundling and providing
information on texts on the Internet.48 He also would like the Department of Education to sponsor
pilot projects and have the antitrust enforcers (Federal Trade Commission or Department of Justice)
look into the legality of prohibiting reimportation of textbooks.49
c. A Student Public Interest Group Study: Exposing the Textbook Industry (?)
In 2007, a group of 17 state student groups conducted their own research about textbook prices,
44.
Id. at 12.
Id. at 13.
46.
Id. at 15-16 (citing National Association of College Stores, 2006,
www.nacs.org/public/industry.asp).
47.
Id. at 15-22.
48.
Id. at 22.
49.
Id. at 25.
8
45.
much of it based on a Massachusetts study.50 The student group charged that the average student pays
$900 per year on textbooks, and that prices are increasing at about four times the rate of inflation.51
A Massachusetts survey of 287 professors discovered that only 23% found the publishers’
websites easy to navigate and that less than half of the publishers’ web sites list the price of the
textbooks. Furthermore, 77% of professors said that sales representatives never or rarely volunteered
the price and that 38% of the representatives would give the price only when asked directly.52
A 2004 CALPIRG study showed that 50% of the textbooks purchased were sold as part of a
bundle, but only half of the faculty said they used the supplemental material with any regularity. The
2004 study reported that 76% of the faculty surveyed thought that new editions were justified “never”
to “half the time” and 40% thought that the new editions were justified “rarely” to “never.”53 The
report recommended that publishers produce new editions54 only when “educationally necessary.” In
addition, the study recommended that publishers unbundle texts and that faculty should have more
information on pricing and options for bundling. The CALPIRG study indicated that some legislative
action may be necessary to bring about these recommendations as it was not in the best interest of the
publishers to do so voluntarily.
IV. A Partial Legislative Solution
Because of the high cost of texts to students, the Washington Post reported in August of 2008,
that 34 states had proposals to address the problem of textbook costs, but only six states had approved
such measures. This article, and others, reported that in some cases students had resorted to pirating
electronic copies or scanned copies of printed books.55
In July 2008, a little help came when President Bush signed into law broad educational
requirements: “The Higher Education Opportunity Act”–H.R. 4137.56 The purpose of the bill is to get
more pricing information into the hands of students and instructors and require supplemental materials
to be unbundled. Now, for example, if a publisher wants to sell a textbook and DVD together, it must
also sell the book and DVD separately. The former practice, in antitrust terms, would be a tying
contract: if you want product A, you have to buy product B.
According to this new law, which is effective July 1, 2010, when any publisher supplies
information to a faculty member regarding a text or supplement, the law requires the publisher to give
to the instructor the following: (1) the price that the bookstore would pay, (2) the price the publisher
would charge the public if sold directly (presumably this would be the list price), (3) a description of
The State PIRGs, Exposing the Textbook Industry: How Publishers’ Pricing Tactics Drive Up the
Cost of College Textbooks, Feb. 2007 www.maketextbooksaffordable.org/newsroom.asp?id2=30443.
51.
Id. at 4.
52.
Id.
53.
Id. at 11.
54.
Id. at 13.
55.
Ylan Q. Mui & Susan Kinzie, Break on Cost of Textbooks Unlikely Before Last Bell, 2010,
WASHINGTON POST, Aug. 20, 2008, at A01; Boston Globe Staff, Textbooks, Free and Illegal, Online
Textbooks, Free and Illegal, Online Use of Pirated Works Hurting Publishers, BOSTON GLOBE, July
18, 2008, Business Section A1/
56.
The Higher Education Opportunity Act, H.R. 4137, 110th Cong. 2008, 20 U.S.C. §1015b.
9
50.
the major changes in the texts or supplements, and (4) the copyright dates of the three previous
editions.57
Colleges and universities are also subject to requirements of the law. They are required to
provide to the students the ISBN number of textbooks and other materials. If that is not available, they
must give students the author, title, publisher, and copyright date, if possible. This information is to
accompany course schedules provided to the students.58
In addition, the bill encourages colleges and universities to provide to students any institutional
programs for renting books or buying books back, as well as guaranteed buy-back programs, and other
cost-cutting strategies.59 In mid-2013, the new law requires the GAO to report to Congress whether
these provisions are being met.60
This law is certainly a step in the right direction. It provides more information to students and
faculty. Still the major problem is whether faculty will seriously consider the price students will pay
for the textbooks they select. Students do not control the decision-making in regards to picking the
text (which is not objectionable), but the typical supply-demand situation is not in place.
V. Free and Legal Textbooks via the Internet
None of these findings suggest that most published and expensive textbooks are going by the
wayside. While we certainly do not begrudge authors their royalties on well-written texts, we would
like instructors to consider a different model: a free or low-cost text that meets the basic needs of the
students. There is a growing movement to make some texts available for free or at a nominal cost to
cover the expense of printing.
In a September 2008 article in the New York Times, a number of sources of free to almost-free
texts were referenced. For example, a Cal Tech economics professor, R. Preston McAffee, has
produced a free introductory economics textbook that he allows anyone to download free as a .pdf file
or a .doc file: http://www.introecon.com/ . Students may obtain a print version for $15 at
http:lulu.com.61 Another source for texts at nominal cost (around $30) is Flat World
Knowledge:http://www.flatworldknowledge.com/ . Their texts are in the areas of accounting and tax,
management, marketing, finance, communication, and information systems.
Rice University, funded by a $6 million grant, has started an effort called “Connexions:”
http://cnx.org/ . Originally it specialized in engineering texts.62 The site now has about 400 texts
spread out into arts, business, humanities, mathematics and statistics, science and technology, and
social science. While there are no business law books there yet, there is a 200 page business ethics
book written by William Frey that students can download for free or purchase a print version for
$14.49.63
57.
20 U.S.C. § 1015b(c) (2008).
20 U.S.C. § 1015(d) (2008).
59.
20 U.S.C. § 1015 (f) (2008)
60.
20 U.S.C. § 1015 (g) (2008)
61.
Noam Cohen, Don’t Buy That Textbook, Download It For Free, NEW YORK TIMES, Sep. 15, 2008,
at C3.
62.
Id.
63.
William Frey, BUSINESS ETHICS, http://cnx.org/content/col10491/latest/ .
10
58.
A somewhat different source of materials comes from M.I.T. Most of the materials are lecture
notes, exams, videos, and some texts from some 1,800 courses:
http://ocw.mit.edu/OcwWeb/web/home/home/index.htm .64
Not surprisingly, one other source comes from the Wiki Project. Besides the well-known
Wikipedia, there are other Wiki projects one of which is Wikibooks. Many of these are texts in
various areas: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Main_Page.
None of this suggests that free texts are about to take over the textbook market. There are still
not enough textbooks to cover either all subject matters or, in the case of say a master’s or doctoral
program, to the depth necessary. The ones that do exist may not have the quality and supplements that
faculty desire. Still, it is a movement from the traditional model. Perhaps it may follow what has
happened with music where .mp3 files replaced the standard cd format which replaced cassette tapes
which replaced vinyl, etc. Product life cycles are a fact of life and textbooks are no exception.
As noted earlier, the number of adjunct faculty are growing and that growth is likely to
continue as state budgets get squeezed. The advantage to a bundled textbook for an adjunct faculty
member is the reduction in time it takes to get “up to speed.” The additional help of having readymade quizzes, tests, syllabi and the like makes their work load easier and is certainly a potent allure for
bundled goods. (However, experienced faculty may find that the test questions often have to be
revised or be corrected to be useful.) This is especially true from a group who is even less connected
to the sales representative and is often “assigned” a textbook. These instructors typically have the same
amount of input into the selection decision with the same information about the cost of the textbook as
the students they are going to teach.
VI. A Free Legal Environment Book?
While the project may seem less than credible to some not at the authors’ university, we have
created a student-written text for the Legal Environment course. The participants include our own
undergraduate and graduate students.
The obvious and enormous disadvantage that we have is that the students are neither lawyers
nor have they attended law school. Thus they are learning as they write. Still the subject is not “rocket
science.” It is a beginner’s course with no pre-requisites. We are fortunate to have excellent students
(average 27+ ACT) and for the most part they are good writers. They know the audience because they
are the audience. The students are motivated by their dislike of high-priced textbook, they are “tuned
in” to the idea of free material and they are willing to try something fairly radical. Our university
encourages faculty-student collaborative learning and because we do not have any science labs in the
business area, this presented itself as an interesting experiment.
We started the project in the summer of 2008 and continued it into the fall and spring
semesters. The students were allowed to work alone or in pairs. They worked from outlines created
by the faculty member. They used their own notes, the Internet, and various business law textbooks as
resources. Obviously, they were strictly forbidden to copy, but because the law in this area is generally
known in the legal community there did not seem a need to footnote well-known legal material.
Students turned in drafts, got comments, and then turned in final drafts. Students in subsequent
64.
A general overview of the MIT project is found here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MIT_OpenCourseWare .
11
semesters improved the chapters by redrafting, adding examples, cases, and other supplementary
matter. The students signed a copyright release that allowed others to revise the materials and for
students to use the final product. We listed anyone working on a chapter as a contributor, regardless of
how much of their product was incorporated into the final version.
International students can work with American students. Our school advocates
internationalization throughout our curriculum so we encouraged our international students to write
about the law of their own country. One student wrote a very good paper on Indian labor law, a second
on the Chinese court system, and a third on Vietnamese courts. Others have written general material
about the law of their home country.
The chapters are available at no cost on a Truman website (www2.truman.edu/~brycej/text.htm).
Students may also aquire a paper copy for the cost of printing (around $25 for a 400 page book). The
text has been redone, expanded, and revised over several semesters. Currently, the text is in its fourth
edition. It is a good fit for the class as taught and is written in a language that students can understand
(rather than the over-“legalese” that is found in many texts).
Unlike textbooks that are written for a national audience, our text (with students predominantly
from Missouri) has a chapter on the courts that explains both the federal and the Missouri courts–with
examples of other state courts. Generally, traditional texts have little on particular state courts. In a
chapter on landlord-tenant law, the text explains the general law of the area as found throughout the
United States; but it also includes the peculiarities of Missouri landlord-tenant law in regard to such
things as assignments and subleases, return of deposits, and the tenant reducing his or her payment to
the landlord for fixing problems on the premises. It also references the building and apartment code of
the city where the university is located.Thus the text provides immediately relevant and useful
information to the student.
The text also has a summary chapter on business organizations. While some traditional
textbooks include this information our current text does not. We normally cover the details of business
organizations in a second business law class that is typically taken only by graduate accounting
students. A few other business classes may have a relatively “light” summary of such organizations.
This chapter (while still a summary) is more robust.
After the first edition was put into place in the fall of 2009 the instructor conducted a survey on
the efficacy of the textbook.65 Generally, the students were well pleased with the content, as well as the
65
Of the 43 respondents answering questions on a five-point scale with one being poor, three being
average and five being excellent; students were asked three questions. Question one was about their
overall rating of the textbook. Question two asked them to rate this textbook to other commercial
textbooks they have seen in other class. Finally, questions three asked whether they thought the project
was worth continuing. To the first question one student rated the textbook experiment at poor, ten rated
it as average and 32 rated it as above average. For question two, only three students rated it below
average compared to other textbooks they were familiar with while seven rated it as comparable and 36
rated it better than similar type textbooks. The reasons they gave were primarily because it was easier
to understand (23 responses), it was less expensive (11), matched well with the lecture (8), and the rest
ran the gamut from liking the examples to the fact that it was well written. The instructor also asked
for thing that the students would like to see changed or added. They wanted more examples, questions
and problems to help them study. The rest of the responses were about formatting issues, typos and
grammatical items.
12
price. At the present, the text is in its fourth edition. The text has been steadily improved over the last
three editions. The text will continue to evolve in future semesters. In the current semester, more
sample problems and some hyperlinked tutorials are being added by the students. While editing was
done earlier, a few students (some working for one of the instructors) have been assigned to examine
the books for typos, poor grammar, badly worded sentences, and charts or textboxes that are not fully
in line with where they should be.
VI.
E-book Readers to the Rescue?
Will e-book reader make it possible to have substantially less expensive textbooks? It is too soon
to answer this question, but technological advances and ever-decreasing prices for hardware make it
probable. The current e-book readers may not be at the tipping point, but they are getting closer.
The iPad is brilliant in its color and size but perhaps somewhat too heavy as something easy to
read. Moving current Microsoft word files and Adobe Acrobat files (.pdf) need inexpensive “apps”
($3.99) but several additional steps are necessary. The authors were able to move a chapter of our
textbook to the iPad and it eventually looked quite satisfactory. The $3.99 .pdf file app was not very
user friendly and included emailing the document to yourself, getting around a puzzling password
question, and several other steps before the document was readable. Once loaded, the chapter looked
perfect. Ultimately, it would be better if no app was necessary and the iPad could read .pdf or Word
files through its own operating system. Several other drawbacks include the lack of a USB port, no
hard drive (though it can be equipped with more memory), and the inability (at least directly) to print.
The Kindle could load both .pdf and .doc files by sending them to Amazon and then receiving
them in several hours in a file format that the Kindle can read.. Because of the relatively small screen
size of the Kindle, a standard page (8 1/2 “ by 11”) was unreadable using a .pdf file because the type
was too small for the screen. It is possible to make the fonts bigger but then reading a line would entail
scrolling from right to left and up and down. An author can fix the problems with a .pdf files by
having an original page that is smaller. Putting a Microsoft Word .doc file worked much better.
Again, it involved sending the file to Amazon and getting a file that the Kindle could read. This was
very readable though problems could arise if the authors did not properly place charts or pictures in
the original .doc file. The Kindle can connect both through a USB port and wirelessly through Wi-Fi.
Authors could address these problems if they formatted their original documents for the e-reader or
if a company like Amazon has someone arrange the document appropriately—something which they
have done now for many thousands of new e-books. Amazon also has a multitude of older, public
domain classics which one can obtain for free. Someone with an interest in classics of philosophy,
literature, and other subjects can load a multitude of books and the standard Kindle can apparently hold
more than 3,000 books. Amazon says that their site and several others have more than a million books
that can be loaded for free onto the Kindle.
What the e-textbook industry needs is something between the iPad and the Kindle, the major
options now available on the market: Something with color but with an e-book reader that is light and
easy to hold. No doubt there will probably be such an option in the not-too-distant future.
There are other e-readers on the market besides the iPad and Kindle. For example, Borders sells a
variety of e-book readers.66 These include a soon-to-be-released six inch screen Kobo Wireless
66
http://www.borders.com/online/store/MediaView_ereaders .
13
Reader that can download books via Wi-Fi. Borders will sell this at the same price as the Kindle and it
appears to be very much like the Kindle (but will it support the Kindle formatted books?). Borders
also has a seven inch screen color Velocity Micro Cruz Reader for $199; this is the first color e-book
reader below the $200 level built on the Android Operating System used in many cell phones. One of
the authors has tried this model and at least on this unit, turning pages was a hit or a miss; it uses a
touch screen and few physical buttons. It is also sold on Amazon but it is getting average reviews from
buyers, though one said that he could load Amazon books on it (compatibility?). Also coming out is a
$299 Velocity Cruz Tablet Computer also built on Android; it also has a seven inch screen and sells
for $299. Borders also sells an existing Kobo for $129 and several Sony e-book readers—one with a
five inch screen for $179 and six inch touch screen for $299. Most of these devices can hold and play
music files. The Kindle, not surprisingly, can play Audible audio books (Audible is now owned
Amazon), which raises the possibility that it could be used for educational audio books and other audio
(such as for foreign language learning.)
On November 19, 2010 Barnes and Noble introduced their color ebook reader: “NookColor.” It
has a seven inch color touch screen and sells for $249. It weighs 15 ounces and is 8.1”x5”x.0.48”.67
One substantial problem with many of these ebook readers (such as the Kindle) or perhaps with
their e-books is the lack of standard pagination. It would be important to show the standard printed
book page numbers—particularly for the purpose of directing students to a page or perhaps for citation
purposes. There are some ways, with third party programs, to estimate the correct page in the printed
book but that may not be enough. Kindle books, for example, up til now have shown no page numbers
the equate to a printed book though they do show what percent that one is through the book and a
location number that increases by the page; this location number is somewhat confusing in that it is not
one number but a range of numbers. For example, one e-book page might show location “205-210”
and the next page might be “211-215.” There are number of ways to fix this. One would be to insert a
bracketed page number in the ebook text that corresponds to the printed page number. The Nook
Color does have page numbers although it is unclear whether they correspond to the print copy’s
number.68 However, Amazon has announced that new firmware for the current Kindle can show page
numbers although the texts will also have to be updated. At least one initial report said that this new
feature is still not implemented well.69
As to what is going on with e-texts, the New York Times reports (October 2010) that digital texts
make up 3% of textbook sales and that it is expected to grow to 10 to 15% by 2012. It reported that at
Hamilton College one-fifth of the texts were available as e-books. A price for a print copy for a
Constitution Law text $189, $142 used, and $85 for a rented book. E-texts prices were typically higher
than for a rental but less than for a used text.70
E-texts should be less expensive than printed text because most of the publishing and materials
costs disappear. Distributions should be less expensive as well through direct downloads. The
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/nookcolor/index.asp?r=1&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&
67
cds2Pid=30919&utm_campaign=NOOKcolor%20-%20Exact&cm_mmc=Google-_-NOOKcolor%20%20Exact-_-NOOKcolor-_-color%20nook&cm_mmca1=069179d9-16ee-7208-02fe0000279190b1&utm_term=color+nook
68
http://www.thenookvskindle.com/
69
Barry Collins, How to Find Real Pages on the Kindle, PC PRO BLOGS, Feb. 23, 2011,
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/blogs/2011/02/23/how-to-find-real-page-numbers-on-the-kindle
70
Foderaro, supra note 1, at A18.
14
question then arises about the costs of the publisher in regard to editing the texts and compensating the
authors. The price of the e-text must then be added to the relatively fixed cost of the e-reader. Will
technology be able to solve the problem of the need in some texts to flip one page to another page (not
immediately adjacent)? Another problem that must be addressed is pagination which is not evident in
some e-books. This can be important in both the classroom setting and scholarship (say, for the
purpose of citing a page from a book or article).
Another question looms over the e-book and e-text situation and that is compatibility. Amazon
books do not load on a Nook. Nook books from Barnes and Noble will not load on a Kindle. Will the
e-book readers and publishers agree on a standard format for an e-book? This is a common technology
question which has been solved for FM radio (but not for AM-stereo), cassettes, compact disks,
standard DVDs, and eventually for high-definition DVDs (though not without a long fight between
companies). Compatibility would certainly make the e-book and e-text market grow much more
quickly but signs of it are not yet present. Sometimes one company will simply win the competition
through market share (without an agreement from competitors) as happened with Sony and Blu-Ray
DVDs. Amazon may believe that it can do the same.
One final question is whether faculty or faculty and students are willing to part with their hard
work in the form of a textbook for free. More and more are doing so, but will it continue?
VIII. Summary
Technology certainly has the potential for lowering the price of textbooks through e-book
technology. Substantially improved and cheaper e-book readers may be several years away, but a
surprising number of ebook readers are already available. Compatibility and the “free text” movement
may be important in the advance of e-texts.
The authors are not suggesting that all or even many colleges and universities should be doing a
student-written textbook or that all e-texts should be free. Faculty should be concerned with the
student satisfaction with textbooks and supplements. Perhaps, faculty should push back against the
publishers continually adding new editions when they are not perceived as needed. Faculty should
indeed ask or find out about the costs of such texts and their accompanying materials and the
possibility of “unbundling” the texts from supplements, if the latter are not utilized.
Another possibility is that instead of trying to do a full-fledged textbook, faculty might consider
whether students could write partial chapters relating to such things as difficult-to-understand subject
matter (which might then be useful to other students in later semesters). The faculty member, or as a
student assignment, could write a summary of the relevant differences in the students’ state laws as
compared with that of other states or with what is generally the case throughout the United States; or,
perhaps, how their particular state has set up its court system.
Some of the current websites like the one at Rice have text and teaching modules available that
are not full-fledged texts. It is possible that many faculty could assist in adding to this site and others
like it.
As many faculty have found out during their initial years in teaching, nothing helps solidify the
understanding of the law as teaching it. Perhaps writing about a particular subject matter can also have
a similar effect to understanding the subject matter.
More generally, because faculty make the decisions about the required textbooks for a class, it
15
would seem that they should be concerned with both the quality and the cost to the students for
learning materials. With the rise of digital e-book readers, there should be an increase in lower-cost
and even free textbooks. It may even be possible to have students, if they are in need, look at a number
of sources to learn the materials. Learning the material in different ways may increase the ability of
the students to understand and retain the information.
With the introduction of new technology such as e-book reader and e-texts and with the
possibility of lower cost textbooks, perhaps a collaboration of faculty and students may help the
technology take off.
16