The Book Industry Study Group held its annual meeting last Friday in New York, and the focus of this year's event was to address some of the many challenges still facing the publishing and bookselling industries now that digital publishing has taken hold. The BISG also introduced its new mission statement, which shifts more attention on digital publishing. “Book Industry … [Read more...] about BISG Annual Meeting Addresses Digital Challenges
digital textbooks
McGraw-Hill Connect Update Makes the Platform More Versatile
For the growing number of platforms that offer some form of digital learning or e-textbook options, the race to compete in the already crowded field is driving innovation. For companies who already began with a strong foundation in academic and K-12 publishing, all that remains is to improve the technology and offer the most comprehensive use of the digital … [Read more...] about McGraw-Hill Connect Update Makes the Platform More Versatile
CourseSmart Rolls Out Digital Textbook Subscriptions for College Students
With estimates as high as $1,200 US per year that college students spend on textbooks alone, digital educational content leader CourseSmart is unveiling its newest feature, aimed at easing that burden to some extent. The CourseSmart Subscription Packs, launched in time for students to return to school in the fall and take full advantage, stands to slash that price figure by as … [Read more...] about CourseSmart Rolls Out Digital Textbook Subscriptions for College Students
Chegg Offers Subscription-Based Textbook Rentals to College Students
A significant number of startups have tried--and for the most part, failed--to entice readers and publishers with a Netflix-style subscription model for reading. Users would pay a monthly fee or adhere to the freemium model of ads within the texts in order to get to read; the publishers would then receive compensation for the books that were consumed during that month, either … [Read more...] about Chegg Offers Subscription-Based Textbook Rentals to College Students
New Business Model for Flooved Includes Open Access, Crowdsourcing
One of the frustrating hurdles of the publishing industry has been the inability to make a subscription-based model for reading work in a large-scale way. While companies like 24Symbols are still moving forward, the "Netflix of books" concept is still pretty elusive. While some of that rests on the shoulders of consumers who were not sure they were going to get the value of … [Read more...] about New Business Model for Flooved Includes Open Access, Crowdsourcing
Students Return to School with Credo’s Homework Help
Credo, the solutions provider for research, reference, and learning help with strategic platforms aimed at different types of student learners, announced recently that its Credo Homework Help platform would now be available to users as a stand-alone tool, rather than requiring a full subscription to Credo Literati. “On-demand homework assistance can mean the difference … [Read more...] about Students Return to School with Credo’s Homework Help
CourseSmart Analytics Completes Beta Test, Now Available for General Use
Beta tests and pilot programs are invaluable sources of feedback and information for technology companies, especially those that are marketing products to a potentially vast audience of consumers. And when conducting a beta period, timing is important so as to maximize on the users' responses in order to roll out the finished product in a timely way. CourseSmart, one of the … [Read more...] about CourseSmart Analytics Completes Beta Test, Now Available for General Use
CourseSmart Enhances its eTextbook Offerings
With some reports showing that the Android platform currently holds about 68% of the market for applications, digital content creators are taking steps to increase their current offerings to meet these customers where their devices are. CourseSmart, a leading provider of digital educational materials and textbooks, has been available on the Android platform for some time, but … [Read more...] about CourseSmart Enhances its eTextbook Offerings
Coursera Revolutionizes Online Learning, Online Textbooks
Online educational provider Coursera was developed through partnerships with more than sixty universities, allowing the company to provide high-quality instruction from world-class speakers and experts. Now, Coursera is working on bringing educational materials to its students via the Chegg e-reader platform at a more affordable price structure. Through agreements with top … [Read more...] about Coursera Revolutionizes Online Learning, Online Textbooks
HMH Buys Tribal Nova Game Developer to Increase Digital Learning Offerings
When one of the world's leading textbook publishers and a well-known educational game developer decide to work together, it can only mean that more dynamic learning tools will soon be hitting the market. That's certainly the hope for the news that Houghton Mifflin Harcourt bought Montreal-based learning game creator Tribal Nova, with forthcoming plans to increase online game … [Read more...] about HMH Buys Tribal Nova Game Developer to Increase Digital Learning Offerings
Newest McGraw-Hill Innovation Aimed at Advanced Placement Students
Digital textbook companies like CourseSmart and Kno recently launched innovative, interactive dashboards that help increase student learning outcomes by providing valuable feedback on how students engage with course material, but McGraw-Hill High Education announced today that its launch of such a dashboard is aimed at a very specific demographic of students.SCOREboard, the … [Read more...] about Newest McGraw-Hill Innovation Aimed at Advanced Placement Students
Kno, Sally Ride Science Take Academic eBooks in a New Direction
The US educational front is just beginning to enjoy the benefits of widespread digital textbook adoption, especially at the public school level. But now, Kno and Sally Ride Science have teamed up to create engaging, informative ebooks with full-color graphics, embedded video, and more, all aimed at encouraging an interest in science in younger students. Created by a premier … [Read more...] about Kno, Sally Ride Science Take Academic eBooks in a New Direction
De Gruyter, Unglue.it Work Together to Crowdfund Open Source Textbooks
When Unglue.it first launched its platform to strip the copyright status of books once a crowdfunded, pre-determined amount of money had been raised, skeptics spoke out. Not against that concept of "ungluing" a book, of course, but against the idea that ordinary readers would be willing to donate money to a publisher to make a book permanently public domain. Happily, Unglue.it … [Read more...] about De Gruyter, Unglue.it Work Together to Crowdfund Open Source Textbooks
McGraw-Hill LearnSmart Compatible with Any Higher Ed Content
The selection, approval, and adoption of academic texts can be a lengthy and carefully vetted process, especially in the public school sector where variables such as the appropriate nature of the content and budget come into play. There is often somewhat more leeway when it comes to adopting texts at the higher education level, with many university professors and department … [Read more...] about McGraw-Hill LearnSmart Compatible with Any Higher Ed Content