Packback has received plenty of attention since its
founders earned a $250,000 investment on the ABC program “Shark Tank.” The
startup is an e-textbook platform that allows students to rent titles for 24 hours
at an average cost of $5.
Founded by a pair of Illinois State University undergrads
in 2012, the company already features 2,500 titles, has deals with the
University of Chicago Press and Sage Publications, and provided content for a
pilot program with McGraw-Hill Higher Education last fall.
During the pilot, 27% of students on campus rented or
purchased a digital textbook from Packback. That percentage was considered
successful since a student survey found that 47% said they already had the
course material when the program was launched.
“We’re disrupting the used-book market disruption and
paving the way to organic student adoption of the next great learning tech
products,” co-founder Mike Shannon told The Washington Post, “all the while kicking back significant new revenue
streams to learning content providers.”