A Contemporary Discourse on Free, Open Source, Online Texts vs. the Alternatives

Posted on August 21, 2008 by David Gray

David Gray, UMassOnline CEO There was a time not so long ago when no one questioned the long-term viability of the mainstream print media. Now newspapers nationwide are suffering. Some visionaries predicted this outcome, but either their positions weren’t heard, or they were heard and routinely discounted or dismissed.

So what are we to make of those few who are telling us today that increasingly expensive hard copy college textbooks will become little more than a college memory in the not-too-distant future? Is it the wishful thinking of a few, or is there a legitimate movement afoot to bring free, open source, online textbooks to all?

In a recent article, Los Angeles Times writer Gale Holland investigated this question. Prominently featured in the piece is R. Preston McAfee, an economics professor at Caltech in Pasadena. Reportedly ‘outraged’ by the high cost of textbooks, Professor McAfee wrote a free online textbook. He’s already said no thanks to an offer of $100,000 for the text from a commercial publisher. His volume, by the way, is being used at Harvard and several other well-known colleges and universities.

I must confess to a more personal attachment to this debate. My son is about to start his third year as an industrial engineering undergraduate student. The costs of his required textbooks each semester are nothing short of staggering. A 2005 study by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that between 1986 and 2004, textbook prices rose at more than double the rate of the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Quite frequently, my son reports purchasing a $100 textbook only to use a small fraction of it in his course. New editions of texts are produced with great regularity, but often with very modest content changes; of course, the practice problems at the end of each chapter are changed.

Sadly, textbook cost inflation is driving some students toward illegal remedies that eerily resemble the firestorm that has been swirling for several years around online music piracy through peer to peer file sharing. The Chronicle of Higher Education in a July 11, 2008 article (please be advised that web access to this article may require a subscription to the Chronicle) noted a rising trend among college students to illegally scan and share textbooks via web sites such as Textbook Torrents. While such behavior is a clear infringement of copyright and punishable under Federal law, the rising incidence of textbook piracy should cause all sides–publishers and consumers alike–to take notice.

The music industry has been hurt severely by its lethargic embrace and understanding of the internet as a mechanism for music distribution. Its sales have fallen off markedly at a time when online music distribution has never been easier. Academic textbook publishers would do well to avoid stumbling into the same deep hole that the music industry fell into. They need to moderate their price increases and assert leadership in using the internet as a lower cost means of textbook distribution. Moving more textbook content to digital formats would also be a very “green” thing for publishers to do. To some extent, this conversion to digital content is starting to happen, but it is occurring too slowly and without the kind of price moderation necessary to stem the tide of student indignation and their use of piracy as a resort.

I urge you to examine The Times piece more thoroughly if you want to hear both sides of the story – and there are at least two sides to this debate. Then, I would welcome you to weigh in here with your opinion – especially if you are a college student or professor.