'Price gouging from Covid': student ebooks costing up to 500% more than in print

Call for inquiry into academic publishers as locked-down students unable to access study material onlineCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageLibrarians at UK universities say students’ reading lists for this term are being torn up because of publishers’ “eye-watering” increases to ebook prices, and some students are now reading what is available or affordable, rather than what their tutors think is best for their course.With thousands of students studying in their bedrooms at home because of the pandemic, providing access to textbooks and research books online has become crucial. However, librarians say academic publishers are failing to offer electronic versions of many books, seen as critical to degree courses during the pandemic. And, they say, universities frequently cannot afford to buy the ebooks available, for which they can be charged more than five times as much as the printed version, often running into hundreds of pounds a copy, sometimes for one user at a time. Related: 'Your coursemates are just computer icons': universities call for mental health cash Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-01-29 12:00:00 UTC ]
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EUP reports 40% rise in ebook sales

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Tue, 01/11/2011 - 09:40 Sales and profit for 2011 have slumped at Edinburgh University Press at the same time the company has reported a 40% rise in year-on-year ebook sales. The Scottish academic publisher has reported an 11.6% fall in sales and... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Survey: Professionals Not Replacing Print With Digital?

This week alone, Ziff Davis Enterprise announced it will replace its three remaining print magazines with digital editions in 2012 and Hanley Wood president and CEO Frank Anton indicated that more magazine closures are likely in his organization, yet a new study from Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Subtext Livens Up Ebooks With Author Commentary and Social Reading

A new social reading app called Subtext today launches on the iPad with a selection of books laden with annotations from authors and researchers. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2011-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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First enhanced ebook from Short Books

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Mon, 24/10/2011 - 08:10 Short Books has produced its first enhanced ebook for the digital version of Birdwatching with your Eyes Closed (3rd November), the new book from Simon Barnes, author of How to be a Bad Birdwatcher. The book explores the... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Issuu Adpages Makes Print Ads Digital-Ready

In the digital sector, some publishers are still waiting for online advertising to become as profitable as its print counterpart once was. Many complain digital ad offerings are not comparable to the quality in print; others say the infrequency and size of advertising units may be causing the... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-10-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Condé Nast Partners with HP for Print-On-Demand Content

Pilot program will allow direct-to-home printer access for some branded content. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-10-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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English-language ebooks in global surge

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Wed, 12/10/2011 - 13:41 English-language ebooks in non-traditional markets have become big business but publishers need to throw off the shackles of established business models to fully exploit the global marketplace. These were the messages greeting... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Agents warn of ebook "reckoning"

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Tue, 11/10/2011 - 09:00 Literary agents speaking at Publishers Launch Frankfurt have challenged publishers to approach ebook royalty discussions in a more "knowledgeable" way or face a "reckoning" from the digital revolution. But there are signs of... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Print Power

Mobile content and community brands dominated the media category of the 2011 Inc. 5000, which recognizes the 5,000 fastest-growing privately-held companies in the U.S. (The number one company in the media category: GoLive! Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Europe set to embrace the ebook

Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Mon, 10/10/2011 - 14:49 European publishers are becoming less resistant to the "digitisation tsunami" as local distribution networks are built and publishers await the arrival of global players such as Amazon, Apple and Google in their territories. ... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Indies call on government to fix book prices

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 07/10/2011 - 08:35 Independent booksellers say the government should step in to fix the price of books after the Booksellers Association called on the coalition to do more to maintain bookshops on the high street. BA c.e.o. Tim Godfray appealed... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Potential Spanish ebook VAT cut welcomed

Written By: Paul Rigg Publication Date: Fri, 07/10/2011 - 15:11 The Spanish socialists pledge to reduce ebook VAT (IVA) to 4% has been welcomed by the director of the Spanish ebook platform Libranda. The announcement came from Alfredo Rubalcaba, who is the socialists’ candidate to become prime... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Weltbild and Hugendubel launch new ebook reader

Written By: Anya Sieg Publication Date: Thu, 06/10/2011 - 17:26 German booksellers Weltbild and Hugendubel have launched their own ebook reader, a week before the Kindle goes onsale in Germany. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google launches UK eBooks store, Australia and Canada 'soon'

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Toubon confident over French VAT cut on ebooks

Written By: Barbara Casassus Publication Date: Wed, 05/10/2011 - 08:51 Former French culture minister Jacques Toubon has said he has high hopes that France will be able to cut VAT on ebooks from 19.6% to 5.5% next January as planned without triggering the wrath of the European Commission.... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bloomsbury launches Connect ebook service

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Perseus launches self-publishing ebook service

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google ebooks UK launch "imminent"

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[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pottermore ebook launch pushed back to 2012

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 30/09/2011 - 17:05 Harry Potter fans will have to wait until the first half of 2012 for the series' ebooks as the opening of the Pottermore shop postponed from its planned October launch. In a posting on the site's blog, it said: "As our... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Notts libraries to charge for ebook loans

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Thu, 29/09/2011 - 08:42 Nottinghamshire library service has become the first to institute a charge for ebook loans. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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