Textbook Publishing, Stat
You can probably guess what Ripoff 101: How the Publishing Industry's Practices Needlessly Drive Up Textbook Costs, a report on the textbook industry by PIRG (Public Interest Research Groups), alleges. Less predictable, though, is the two-faced nature of the statistics cited:
Among PIRG's findings: Wholesale prices for textbooks have jumped 62% since 1994, while prices charged for all finished goods have gone up 14% and the cost of general books has risen 19%; three-fourths of the faculty surveyed said that new editions were justified "half the time" or less; bundled books cost more and create an unnecessary expense because two-thirds of faculty surveyed said they rarely or never use the add-ons; textbooks costs on average 20% more in the U.S than in the U.K.
The AAP defends itself by using Zogby poll figures that show 56% of professors surveyed thought textbooks were published as often as needed or not often enough. The survey also found that 75% of professors require or recommend that their students purchase textbook packages that include supplemental materials, which would seem to contradict PIRG's contention that those bundled add-ons create needless costs for students.
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The First Word On the Book Publishing Industry
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