September
2, 2005
GAO analysis
of textbook costs accurate but incomplete
Used books, poorly prepared students to blame
The Government Accountability
Office (GAO) study of textbook pricing overlooks two student-centered
facts that have contributed to the increase in textbook costs in recent
years, said Richard Hull, executive director of the Text and Academic
Authors Association: Students don't keep their textbooks, seeking to
gain returns on them by selling them back to bookstores and co-ops for
resale; and students are increasingly poorly prepared to learn from
straight text-only materials.
The GAO study lays
responsibility for the increase in textbook prices at the door of publishers
who package textbooks with supplemental materials, said Hull, but overlooks
significant external forces driving up the publisher's costs. "As publishers
and authors are bypassed by the sale of used books, the cost of getting
a new edition to press must be spread across a smaller and smaller number
of copies in the life of any edition," he said. "If students would keep
their textbooks for future reference, publishers could lower their prices
because they would increase the volume of sales of a given edition;
and authors of textbooks would receive royalties roughly approximating
the number of students benefitting from their books."
Hull said supplemental
materials are a necessity for most students, many of whom come to college
unable to learn from traditional textbooks: "The generations of students
who have spent many hours daily watching television or other visual
media lack the facility, skills, and attention span for absorbing information
from the written word. Hence, graphics, CD-ROM, and study guides are
needed by students to increase their comprehension of material which,
a generation or two ago, students readily mastered. As well, more open
admissions are bringing students into college who are comparatively
poorly prepared for college work, again necessitating supplemental learning
aids. Preparation of such add-ons drives up the cost of textbooks."
One additional factor
to the increase in textbook prices, said Hull, seems to be the politicization
of textbooks by state textbook boards: "The cost of dealing with the
state adoption process adds a sort of 'non-creative overhead' to the
publishing process that increases the costs borne by publishers for
a process that is not justified by a corresponding improvement in the
resulting texts."
All these factors
need to be given due weight by the GAO in reaching recommendations to
help guide the textbook industry, said Hull: "Our changing cultural
lifestyles have costs; increased textbook prices are one of them."
top
of page for all news
Google Print
Library Position 'Backwards': Copyright holder should not have to opt-out
TAA Immediate Past
President Michael Sullivan called Google's plan to give publishers and
other copyright holders the option of opting out of the company's Library
Print Project, which involves scanning a significant portion of five
major libraries and placing them on searchable servers around the world,
"backwards" and in conflict with both the spirit and the law of copyright.
"One of the tenets
of copyright law in the United States is to serve as a protection for
unauthorized reproduction and distribution of an author's intellectual
work product," he said. "The authority to grant reproduction or distribution
rights lies with the copyright holder, not with the person or organization
seeking to exploit the work."
Google is putting
the burden on publishers and other copyright holders to opt-out of having
their works digitized and placed in the online library, an "onerous
requirement" said Richard T. Hull, TAA's executive director, for authors
of textbooks and academic works, many of whom hold copyright to at least
some of their works, to have to contact Google in order to restrict
unauthorized exploitation of their copyrighted works for Google's private
benefit.
If Google wants
to make these copies, said Hull, it should seek permission and pay a
reasonable fee as anyone else would. "Authors and publishers have economic
interests that should not be circumvented," he said. "While we applaud
the general idea behind increasing access to our work, Google must respect
the interests of authors and publishers while pursuing its own. The
use that Google proposes is not an excused fair use in any recognized
sense of the doctrine."
Sullivan said that
while TAA supports access to copyrighted works, it firmly upholds the
position that only the copyright holder can authorize the type of access
that Google seeks.
Read Media Coverage
of TAA's Position on the Google Print Library Project at:
Information Week:
http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?
articleID=170102359
Marketing Vox:
http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2005/09/01
Ecommerce:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3531221
TechWeb:
http://www.techweb.com/wire/ebiz/170102334
CNET News:
http://news.com.com/2060-10803_3-0.html?tag=nefd.bl
top
of page for all news
Customized Literature
Database Launched
Thomson Higher Education
has launched an enhanced database designed to provide a custom print
on demand textbook option for introduction to literature, poetry, fiction
and drama courses. Called Sundance Choice Literature, the database is
easy to search, and customized compilations can be published along with
supplemental materials (i.e., author headnotes or research questions).
Instructors can
choose which short stories, poems, plays or novellas they wish to use
in their class and immediately view the cost of the anthology to their
bookstore. The instructor can also determine the order of the selected
content, which supplemental material will be included, and whether they
would like to add their own original materials. For more information,
or to browse through the available readings, visit http://www.sundance.thomsoncustom.com
top
of page for all news
Hull sends letter
to editor of New York Times
In a letter to the
New York Times, TAA's Executive Director Richard Hull responds to an
op-ed by Ian Ayres (www.nytimes.com/2005/09/16/opinion/16ayres.html)
who suggests that the solution to higher textbook prices lies in colleges
including the price of textbooks in tuition. Hull said Ayres' plan "would
lead to some concealment of the cost of textbooks, but it is not at
all clear that it would be anything more than an invitation to load
onto textbooks the costs of other operations."
Here is the full
text of Hull's letter to the editor: Editor: Ian Ayres (Sept. 16 2005)
suggests the solution to higher textbook prices lies in colleges including
the price of textbooks in tuition. Ayres' plan would lead to some concealment
of the cost of textbooks, but it is not at all clear that it would be
anything more than an invitation to load onto textbooks the costs of
other operations.
The high cost of
textbooks reflects the shortened life of an edition, now typically only
three years. The secondary market in bookstores that repurchase texts
at a fraction of the original price and then resell them at a substantial
profit recycles texts without benefit to either publisher or author.
One copy may be purchased successively by 4 or 5 students, with only
the first sale earning the publisher and authors anything at all. Publishers
would respond positively to a plan that would return some of these resale
profits.
Richard T. Hull,
TAA Executive Director
top
of page for all news
News, notes from
the Executive Director
The first two months
of my new appointment as Executive Director have passed, and I thought
a brief report to TAA members might be of interest and might give a
sense of the various things the organization is doing.
One project I've
undertaken is to digitize all the back issues of the TAA Report and
its successor, The Academic Author, to make them available in an online
archive to TAA members. I've been impressed, reading these documents,
with the quality of the articles and the range of topics, and much of
their news and advice remains of value today. As we turn increasingly
to a digital mode of service to members, it seems wise to make these
issues accessible to all who join. The scanning is slow, but the full
set should be available sometime this autumn.
Several news items
have commanded my attention, along with that of executive committee
members. The Google Print Library Project, undertaken by Google to scan
the contents of the Stanford, Michigan Oxford, Harvard and New York
City Libraries, has substantial potential for copyright violation. Google
has taken the position that fair use under copyright law permits it
to digitize these collections, including works still under copyright,
and make "snippets" or short sections of the works available
on line, without explicit permission of copyright holders. Some publishers
have been approached and have given permission; but works whose copyright
is held by authors, and works whose publishers have not been contacted,
are being digitized unless the copyright holder explicitly opts out
by November 1 of this year. TAA takes the position that copyright law
is being turned on its head, and that it should be the responsibility
of Google to request permission, and not the copyright holders responsibility
to take the initiative. A press release has stimulated several articles,
a sampling of which may be found on this page below.
Various operations
matters have commanded considerable attention these past months. Most
notable is the need to reduce the amount of staff time, estimated at
65%, that must be spent on Texty and McGuffey Awards. We have considered
various ways of streamlining the process, and have begun to experiment
with a couple. Referees for the awards are being asked to commit to
three years of reviewing texts for the awards in their fields; hopefully
that will cut down on the amount of time needed for recruiting judges
each year. We have explored ways of speeding the delivery of nomination
volumes to the judges by their publishers. We hope that these measures
will make it easier for staff to fulfill the duties associated with
these worthy awards while assuring high quality evaluations.
We have also streamlined
the telephone and computerized operations of the organization, with
potential savings in telephone costs of several thousand dollars each
year resulting from switching to Vonage, an internet-based long distance
service that provides unlimited long distance calling for a flat monthly
fee.
All this, on top
of the excitement of the Convention and concerns over our members and
convention site for next year in New Orleans has kept me well occupied!
Richard Hull
TAA Executive Director
top
of page for all news
TAA ad structure
changes for fiscal year 2005-2006
TAA announces changes
in its advertising structure for fiscal year 2005-2006, which runs from
July 1 to July 1. TAA will no longer be accepting full page ads for
the print newsletter. The largest ad size will be a half page. Advertisers
who commit to a half page ad for four issues will become a Featured
TAA Sponsor on the TAA home page for three months (see our current Featured
Sponsor at www.TAAonline.net). Their ad will then be moved to one of
three places on the TAA website: the TAA Notes page; the TAA Industry
News page or the TAA Member Center for an additional three months. These
pages are the most visited.
The TAA Notes page
and the TAA Industry News page will only contain three ads each. The
Member Center will contain a total of six ads at any one time. TAA is
now offering ad space on the TAA Notes, Industry News and Member Center
pages at the following rates: 3 months - $400; 6 months - $450; 9 months
- $500; 12 months - $525. Advertisers will not have to commit to a year's
worth of print ads to advertise on the TAA Notes, Industry News or Member
Center pages — only to appear on the home page as a Featured TAA
Sponsor.
If you have any
questions about TAA's new advertising structure, please contact Lisa
Thorsell, Advertising Manager, at (608) 687-9525 or lisamt321@yahoo.com
top
of page for all news
TAA Offers Help
to Members Affected by Hurricane Katrina
Any TAA member that
needs help in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, please contact TAA headquarters
at (727) 563-0020 or TEXT@tampabay.rr.com
and TAA will do its best to assist you. TAA Executive Director Richard
Hull has offered to rent his three bedroom, two bath house, located
in Tallahassee, Florida, to a TAA member in need of temporary housing.
Please contact him
directly at rthull62@hotmail.com
or (850) 893-6539.
If any other TAA
members own property in areas that could be accessed by Katrina victims
for temporary housing, or can offer their assistance in any other way,
please contact Hull or TAA headquarters. At least nine TAA members live
in Louisiana, Alabama or Mississippi, the states hit hardest by Hurricane
Katrina.
top
of page for all news
TAA President
Experiences Brush with Hurricane
TAA President John
Wakefield, who lives in Florence, Alabama, said his home and university
lost power when Hurricane Katrina came through his area (300 miles from
the coast, but a bull's eye for the passing tropical storm). Everything
is now up and running again.
top
of page for all news
Renew Your Membership
Online!
TAA has just launched
a new online member form that will allow members to renew online using
a secure server. The form can also be used by new members. Check it
out in the TAA Member Center here.
top
of page for all news
Google Print
Library Position 'Backwards'
TAA Immediate Past
President Michael Sullivan called Google's plan to give publishers and
other copyright holders the option of opting out of the company's Library
Print Project "backwards" and in conflict with both the spirit and the
law of copyright. Google's project involves scanning a significant portion
of five major libraries and placing them on searchable servers around
the world. Read the entire article in the Industry News section here.
Read Media Coverage
of TAA's Position on the Google Print Library Project at:
Information Week:
http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?
articleID=170102359
Marketing Vox:
http://www.marketingvox.com/archives/2005/09/01
Ecommerce:
http://www.internetnews.com/ec-news/article.php/3531221
TechWeb:
http://www.techweb.com/wire/ebiz/170102334
CNET News:
http://news.com.com/2060-10803_3-0.html?tag=nefd.bl
top
of page for all news
Make a Gift to
the TAA Foundation to Support Research on Textbook Author Diversity
The TAA Foundation
is asking for donations from members towards a $15,000 matching grant
from TAA. For every $1 you donate, TAA will match it. For example, your
donation of $25 will become $50. All gifts are tax-deductible. To make
a donation to the TAA Foundation, contact Janet Tucker at TAA headquarters
at (727) 563-0020 or mail your donation to TAA Foundation c/o TAA, P.O.
Box 76477, St. Petersburg, FL 33737-6477.
top
of page for all news
New TAA Fax Number
TAA headquarters
switched its phone system over to a new broadband system. The phone
number will remain the same, but the new fax number is (727) 230-2409.
top
of page for all news
2006 TAA Convention:
New Orleans
The 2006 TAA Convention
will be held in New Orleans July 7 and 8. Chris Harris will serve as
convention chair.
top
of page for all news
Archive
of Past News
Return to Current News |
