JISC conducts e-textbook business model trials

In September, the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) in the UK announced that it would begin conducting trials to explore the co-existence of e-textbooks and paper textbooks, and evaluate potential business models. According to a new posting on the JISC website, eight textbook publishers, three e-book aggregators, and ten universities are working together on the trials. Four trials will be conducted to: assess the sustainability of offering unlimited access to e-textbooks via aggregated platforms or publisher-specific platforms, explore the role of the library in offering students a range of e-textbook options, access the impact on print sales of textbooks by offering access via libraries, and determine if making e-textbooks available in libraries improves the sell-through of existing adoptions. More information about the universities, publishers, textbooks, and e-book aggregators involved in the trials can be found on the JISC website.

JISC e-book business model trials to begin this fall

Since 2007, the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) in the UK has been working on a national e-books observatory project to learn more about the impact of e-books and to develop new models to stimulate the e-book market. From November 2007 to December 2008, students at 127 universities in the UK were given access to 36 science, technology, and medical e-textbooks. The results from the study showed that giving students access to e-texts may not have an effect on print sales.

According to a posting on the JISC website, the committee is now exploring the co-existence of e-textbooks and paper textbooks, and evaluating potential business models. Trials will be conducted this fall to access the sustainability of offering access to e-textbooks via aggregated platforms or publisher-specific platforms, determine the impact that e-access via libraries has on the sales of print textbooks, and determine if online access through libraries improves sell-through of existing adoptions. During the trials, students will be given a variety of access options including complete e-textbooks, chapters, short-term rentals, and the ability to purchase the print version. The trials will run through May 2010 and a final report of the results will be published in August 2010.

JISC to make 3,000 e-books freely available to college students in the UK

Since 2007, the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) national e-books observatory project has been working to explore the impacts, observe the behaviors, and develop new models to stimulate the e-book market. Throughout the project, more than 40,000 students from across the UK have been observed to determine how they access, use, and download e-books.

Recently the JISC released the initial results from their first user survey. The results suggest that giving students access to e-books does not affect print sales and e-books actually supplement traditional textbooks. In addition, e-books improve the way students learn by broadening their analytical and evaluation skills. The JISC has also released an analysis of two open ended questions from the survey. The analysis shows that accessibility is the main attraction for e-books and students enjoy the ability to access the books at any time, wherever they are.

In addition to the surveys, the JISC has also announced that they will partner with the Learning Skills Council (LSC) to fund an e-books for further education project. For the next five years, the project will make 3,000 e-books freely available to every college in the UK. The titles will cover a variety of subjects including: Heath and Social Care, Engineering, Fashion Design, and Automobile Electronics. The students will be able to access the e-books at any time through an ebrary e-books platform. Colleges will also be able to purchase additional e-books at discounted rates to build their digital libraries to meet the specific needs of students on their campus.

Initial results from the JISC national e-books observatory project

The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) national e-books observatory project in the UK began in 2007 and since then the committee has been working to explore the impacts, observe the behaviors, and develop new models to stimulate the e-book market. Earlier this month, the JISC released the results of their first user survey which was circulated to 127 higher education libraries and included more than 20,000 responses. The portions of the survey of particular significance to college stores include: the interest level for e-books and e-book purchasing intentions. The results of the survey show that there is a high level of interest in e-books with more than 60% of the academic population already using e-books. When reviewing the results by gender, age group, and level of study, men and postgraduates were more likely to use e-books and there was no significant difference among age groups. However, when it comes to purchasing e-books, students purchasing intentions are low. Only 4.6% of students actually paid for the book, while 45.3% got it from the university library, and 43.5% accessed it free off the internet.

Last week at the London Book Fair, the JISC discussed the initial results from their observatory project which provided UK university students with free access to 36 science, technology, and medical e-textbooks for two years. The results of the study show that giving students access to the e-texts did not have an effect on print sales and e-textbook usage was strong across all age groups. The study also revealed the current challenges with e-books including: students and administrators dislike for DRM restrictions and their dissatisfaction with the current purchasing model for e-books. The full report will be released in June and the results will be shared with participating publishers and academic institutions in an effort to help the market develop, and to help target the current pricing and licensing issues for e-books.