In addition to the increase in student loan rates, college students have even more to worry about; textbooks. Textbooks can make or break the attitude one would have in regards to classes. I mean, after spending so much on classes, fees, parking, and food, the last thing you would want to worry about is being physically unprepared. But, thanks to the vast amounts of technology we now have more affordable routes by which we purchase books.
To lighten the burden for students, the Department of Justice and Apple are battling in court over e-book pricing. If the battle works out, it will cause a major blow to the multi-billion dollar textbook industry. Yet an explosion in the already popular iPad(IF the ebooks are priced low enough), at the same time could this hurt the Backpack industry? I mean without the need of ALL those Heavy A** textbooks….Nah, Kids like backpack with nothing even in em, I digress. Here’s what USAToday has to say about it;
Via USA Today:
Textbook sales, for both higher education and K-12, will reach an estimated $13.7 billion in the U.S. this year, according to Outsell, a research firm. The overall market is expected to increase over the next few years as the student population is growing, according to Kate Worlock, an analyst at Outsell.
Just as with e-books, the shift comes as students turn to their tablets and smartphones for digital textbooks….
The late Steve Jobs had his eye on textbooks, calling the industry “ripe for digital destruction” in Walter Isaacson’s biography. The Department of Justice case only focuses on trade e-books, and whether, say, $10 or $12 is a reasonable price reached fairly by all parties. But its outcome could also potentially influence the pricing of textbooks, where a college student can spend on average $1,200 a year, according to the College Board.
Steve was SUCH a Visionary!
Now the government can control what’s in your text book. They can change history over night