2008 Woodie Awards
EDITORIAL
Book prices: out of control
Date created: 11/22/04 Section: OPINION
In addition, updated versions of textbooks are being created at an astonishing rate. In some cases, new editions are released every year, rendering the previous edition worthless. When students try to sell the exorbitantly expensive edition (which was "new" just months prior) back to the bookstore, they find that it cannot be sold back. It is common scenarios like this that have forced many students to turn to the Internet.
Use of the Internet has the power to change things. For example, ScrewBookPrices.com was started by a 26-year-old entrepreneur from San Jose who was frustrated by the high prices of his textbooks. The website connects students from various Bay Area campuses who want to sell or buy books. It works in a classified ad-type way.
There are other used book websites that operate in similar ways, most common of which is eBay. Students would have to plan ahead, making purchases in time to receive the books in the mail by the beginning of their classes. However, a little planning can go a long way. If students are fed up with new book prices, they should find ways to buy used, effectively boycotting the overpriced publishers.
Publishers have been having their way with students for years, and it's time to put a stop to their monopoly on education. If more students used online services instead of paying unnecessarily high prices for bundles of new books, not only would they save precious money, they could also have the power to effect change in the tyrannical textbook selling industry.
Use of the Internet has the power to change things. For example, ScrewBookPrices.com was started by a 26-year-old entrepreneur from San Jose who was frustrated by the high prices of his textbooks. The website connects students from various Bay Area campuses who want to sell or buy books. It works in a classified ad-type way.
There are other used book websites that operate in similar ways, most common of which is eBay. Students would have to plan ahead, making purchases in time to receive the books in the mail by the beginning of their classes. However, a little planning can go a long way. If students are fed up with new book prices, they should find ways to buy used, effectively boycotting the overpriced publishers.
Publishers have been having their way with students for years, and it's time to put a stop to their monopoly on education. If more students used online services instead of paying unnecessarily high prices for bundles of new books, not only would they save precious money, they could also have the power to effect change in the tyrannical textbook selling industry.
