Three Institutions Sign Up to Start Immediately, Many Others in Pipeline;
Parallel Arrangement with CoursePacks Etc. Allows Additional Schools to Pilot
New York, NY, December 7, 2011 - AcademicPub™, the dynamic online platform from SharedBook Inc. that enables college professors to create custom print or eBooks quickly and cost effectively, continued to gain momentum today as it announced the debut at three schools of CustomCollegePLUS™, a co-branded custom publishing solution for institutions of higher education.
Revealing an initial trio of schools, SharedBook Inc. CEO Caroline Vanderlip said that North Dakota State University (NDSU), Palmer Chiropractic College in Florida, and University of Alberta in Canada have formalized plans to work with AcademicPub to support the custom needs of their institutions. The company also announced a parallel arrangement with CoursePacks Etc. (CPE), an off-campus coursepack provider, to offer custom eBooks and physical books; this separate deal will allow for CustomCollegePLUS to be piloted at the approximately 30 institutions which currently work with CPE.
In a related announcement, the company said that other colleges and universities who sign up for CustomCollegePLUS by January 31, 2012 can take advantage of an introductory offer providing the program free-of-charge to institutions.
Through CustomCollegePLUS, schools will take advantage of any, or all, of the following menu of features:
• Centralized management of all on-campus custom course creation and distribution through a branded portal
• Dynamic, flexible formatting that includes the ability to create custom covers, page layouts and trim sizes
• Choice of distribution, through either bookstore or direct student purchase;
• Creation & management of a custom archive of materials used by faculty in developing their materials for reference and reuse.
"CustomCollegePLUS gives schools an opportunity to mold the benefits of AcademicPub specifically to their institution," said Vanderlip. "All of the branding opportunities, the format and output options, and especially the choice of distribution means that every school can customize the platform so it fits its needs perfectly. Most importantly, it helps schools build a sustainable, profitable business model via customizable business terms."
According to Vanderlip, schools choosing a bookstore distribution option on their campuses will receive:
• Access to the easy-to-use bookstore portal that aggregates custom book orders from faculty members, handles ordering, and digitally archives custom books from that institution for future reference;
• The ability to sell eBooks if the bookstore is not already enabled;
• Marketing support to engage instructors and drive usage; and
• Options to print through AcademicPub or through a different vendor.
Colleges and universities joining the CustomCollegePLUS program will also be able to take advantage of the rapid and continuing growth of the AcademicPub Content Library. Launched in April 2011 with less than 20 publishing partners, the AcademicPub platform has grown more than fivefold in just seven months and now counts more than 100 publishers on its roster, providing more than 2 million units of high-quality content across disciplines, a figure that rises every week. A complete list of publishing partners may be found
here.
About AcademicPub
AcademicPub, Sharedbook Inc's technology platform for higher education, assembles, composes, prices and delivers custom textbooks - in eBook and/or print format. AcademicPub allows for immediate creation and inclusion of copyright-cleared content from anywhere, such as web articles, self-generated lectures or from the AcademicPub Content Library. Digital or print distribution generates a fast and easy way for educators to provide an engaging educational experience, with lower prices and up-to-the-minute materials for students. More information and free registration for faculty is available at
www.academicpub.com. Headquartered in New York since 2004, SharedBook Inc. is privately held and can be found at
www.sharedbook.com.
About CoursePacks Etc.
CoursePacks Etc. is dedicated to providing academic institutions and their faculty a legal and economical way to offer students the most current and relevant information available, and to provide students with valuable course materials of the highest quality. Based in Michigan, CoursePacks Etc. has more than 10 years experience working with the top US and Canadian community colleges, two- and four-year colleges and universities. The company's intent is to pursue and maintain a position as an international provider of quality, specialized education publishing. More information can be found at
www.coursepacksetc.com.
Contact:
James A. Boyle
Boyle Public Affairs
jim@boylepublicaffairs.com
(571) 213-3979
