Kevin Poindexter, text manager at the University of Dayton Bookstore, says the store is offering around 35-50 e-textbooks this semester.
The Wright State University Bookstore and Wittenberg University Bookstore are also offering an extensive collection of e-textbooks this semester, with books from 15 disciplines on the Universal Digital Textbook Web site.
Wright State’s collection stands out for its number of vocational and professional education books, while Wittenberg has a number of business textbooks.
Poindexter said there hasn’t been much demand for e-books this year, and he said it won’t be a few years until students begin using them more often.
“At some point things are going to change, (but) students have to be comfortable with the e-book style of learning,” Poindexter said.
And many students aren’t comfortable yet: According to the National Association of College Stores, digital textbooks could account for 15 percent of all textbook sales by 2012. Digital textbooks currently account for only 2-3 percent of all textbook sales, said Charles Schmidt, director of Public Relations for The National Association of College Stores.
Miami University junior Catherine Couretas said actual books are still the favorite choice for most students.
“I think that in the end, at least half of students would still rather have hard copies of books,” she said. “It’s so much easier to concentrate.”
However, Poindexter said he and other bookstore managers are aware of their emerging competitors. At the forefront is CourseSmart, a Web-based service that allows students to subscribe to electronic textbooks for 180 or 360 days.
CourseSmart offers 7,099 titles in 113 disciplines. Students can print out portions of the text, but the books disappear after the rental period. CourseSmart also has its own iPhone application.
Couretas said she might use an e-textbook if the price was right. “I know I would buy or rent textbooks online if they were significantly cheaper, but I would never use my iPhone to read them,” Couretas said.
Most of CourseSmart’s offerings are half the price of a new textbook, with the company boasting that using their service, students spent an average of $61.48 per e-textbook in August 2009.
Despite the low demand for e-textbooks, UD is still trying to stay ahead of the trends.
Julie Banks, university retail manager operations manager at the UD Bookstore, said the university is piloting a textbook rental program this semester.
“We want to provide as many options as possible for our students,” Banks said.
Poindexter said the UD Bookstore has also looked to the marketplace when pricing their textbooks this year, lowering their prices when they think they can help.
“College bookstores are still the most convenient place to go,” Poindexter said. “They have everything, and if something happens where you don’t need a book anymore, they can take care of it. If you buy it online, you’re stuck with it.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-0633 or lhouser@ coxohio.com.
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