Pearson Turns the Page on College Textbooks as Digital Courseware Demand Grows

Major Shift from Print Reflects Company Commitment to Lowering the Cost of Higher Education

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Jul 16, 2019, 00:01 ET

LONDON, July 16, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Pearson, the world's learning company signaled a strategic commitment to the digital future of higher education, affordability and lifelong learning by announcing today it is breaking from the traditional education publishing model of lengthy and expensive print revisions, which has defined U.S. college publishing since the 1970's.

Instead, all future releases of Pearson's 1500 active U.S. titles will be "digital first" and updated on an ongoing basis driven by developments in the field of study, new technologies, such as artificial intelligence, data analytics, and Pearson's own efficacy research. Pearson is the only education publishing company setting out to do this across all of its active titles. It's a product as a service model and a generational business shift to be much more like apps, professional software or the gaming industry.

"Students are demanding easier to access and more affordable higher education materials, with nearly 90% of learners using some kind of digital education tool," said John Fallon CEO, Pearson. "We've changed our business model to deliver affordable, convenient and personalized digital materials to students. Our digital first model lowers prices for students and, over time, increases our revenues. By providing better value to students, they have less reason to turn to the secondary market. This will create a more predictable, visible revenue stream with a better quality of earnings that enables us to serve the needs of learners and customers more effectively."

"Our digital courseware makes learning more active, engaging and immersive, improving outcomes for students and their teachers, and helping college leaders meet the growing demand for lifelong learning."

College students already access over 10 million digital courses and e-books each year from Pearson. This move continues to reduce costs and improve the experience for students. With the switch to digital, students can expect to pay less, with an average price of $40 for an eBook and $79 for a full suite of digital learning tools. Students who still want a print textbook will be able to rent one from Pearson for an average price of $60. For students at one of the 700 U.S. colleges or universities using Pearson's "Inclusive Access" offering, prices are even lower.

This move comes as Pearson releases its popular Revel product on the company's new Global Learning Platform, an engine that will enable Pearson and its partners to launch personalized learning experiences more quickly and with better outcomes. Revel also is now the first-and only-college courseware compatible with Amazon Alexa. And, in the fall, Pearson will release its Aida app, a breakthrough AI enabled calculus tutor to help students learn with step by step feedback.

Pearson is committed to lifelong learning, with the goal of giving everyone from college students to people in the workplace affordable and easy to access digital higher education materials and assessments. 62% of Pearson revenue now comes from digital or digitally enabled products and services that make lifelong education possible.

For more information please visit www.pearson.com.

About Pearson
We are the world's learning company with more than 24,000 employees operating in 70 countries. We combine world-class educational content and assessment, powered by services and technology, to enable more effective teaching and personalized learning at scale. We believe that wherever learning flourishes so do people.

Contact:
Scott Overland, (202) 909-4520
[email protected]

SOURCE Pearson