8A: Solving The Problem



Opportunity: University of Florida teachers often cast an enormous burden on students by requiring expensive textbooks distributed by massive book publishing corporations.



I want to create an annual subscription service for textbooks. The service would be created and subsidized by the University of Florida, that allows students to view and read the required textbooks for their courses. The University has an endowment of over $1.2 billion, so this would be a drop in the bucket. The University already has an “opt-in” system for specific textbooks, but students are still required to pay the full price of the book. If the University offered an optional flat price for all students, let’s say $250 for the year added to cost of tuition, I’m sure many students would opt in to this option for the ability to read digital copies of required textbooks. If students want hard copies of the book, they can buy it at full price, but if they want to save money, they can use this book subscription service to read digital copies. The subscription service would have a proprietary software that would allow students to read and annotate in the book, but would be unable to download or keep the book after the course is finished.

Comments

  1. laityn russellFebruary 1, 2019 at 9:59 AM

    Hi Frederico,

    This, overall, is a great solution to overpriced textbooks. However, there are some things to consider like quantity of textbooks for students and the price variation among textbooks. For instance, as a Telecommunications student, I generally require two to three textbooks for an entire semester. These textbooks range from $10 to $40 dollars. My roommate, a health major, however, usually has to buy anywhere from four to seven textbooks that average $100 per book. I personally would not opt for the subscription since I do not spend anywhere near $250 on textbooks alone, however she may. I believe this may become an issue with a subscription service but do think, if tweaked, could work.

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  2. ChrisFebruary 1, 2019 at 12:48 PM

    This is a great solution for people that don't want the text book for reference after the class is over. I am currently working on a second degree and usually keep the books I feel will be a valuable resource in the future. I have gone back to do research several times using the books I have kept. This is not a priority for some though so your solution may be helpful for many students.

    ReplyDelete
  3. VictoriaFebruary 1, 2019 at 5:07 PM

    I think this is a good solution and I like the fact you would be marketing to University of Florida and the students. I think you could even offer different price rates as far as per semester, per year, or even an all inclusive access over a few years. This idea has a lot of potential to grow. I just think you really need to do some research into your target audience and price platforms. Personally I would not use the service now since I was not required to purchase any books this semester. However, my freshman year I know I spent over $500 in core class books in one semester. I think you have a good idea to build on.

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  4. Caroline PierceFebruary 3, 2019 at 11:01 AM

    Hi Federico,
    There are so many things wrong with the way our education system is so expensive in this country! I like that your idea allows students to have a reduced rate for an online digital version of a textbook because it is better for the environment. Another issue with ‘required’ textbooks is that sometimes teachers have them as required in the syllabus and then never assign any reading or material from them. Maybe also have your program require teachers to reevaluate whether or not the text should really be ‘required’.

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  5. KirbyMcMullenFebruary 4, 2019 at 9:27 PM

    Frederico,
    This is a brilliant plan. Some students spend thousands of dollars on textbooks yearly and they must because of the teachers requiring them for their class. If the student does not get the book he/she is likely to not do well in the class. This subscription you have mentioned would be a great idea because it would allow more students to get the exact edition the teacher asks the students to get for every class at a much affordable rate. The University of Florida makes a lot of money on books and they would continue to do so if everybody opted in for a subscription of $250 a year.

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