Simba: Courseware Shapes Digital Footprint in College Market

STAMFORD, Conn., May 13, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite being free, in many instances, etextbooks have yet to be a hit with college students. If not etextbooks, what are the digital formats of choice for course materials in higher education?

Courseware and other multimedia interactive and mobile materials are moving on campus and shaping the digital future of the $5 billion-plus instructional materials market, according to College Course Materials Market Forecast 2015, the most recent research on the college market from Simba Information.

"Digital materials other than an electronic replica of a print textbook, materials that help students progress through a course to successful completion are leading the digital surge in higher education," said Kathy Mickey, senior analyst and managing editor of the Education Group at Simba.

"Moreover, various initiatives involving open-source materials with a low cost or free—and often not resembling a textbook so much as a collection of varied resources—are on the increase," Mickey said.

With a robust uptake, multimedia materials drove an estimated 32% of the college course materials sales in 2014, while traditional new textbooks slipped to a 48% share, even in a strong year for new editions, according to Simba. Sales of used textbooks captured the remaining 20% share.

College Course Materials Market Forecast 2015 provides a complete analysis of market conditions and industry initiatives in the higher education instructional materials space. Key topics covered in the report include:

• Market size by course materials segments of new and used textbooks and multimedia;
• Drivers of segment growth;
• Rise of platforms as dominating technology;
• Monetizing OER;
• Changing distribution models;
• Market segment projections through 2018.

College Course Materials Market Forecast 2015 provides data and analysis for publishers, courseware developers, marketing and business development professionals, investors and course materials distributors. For more information on Simba's new report, visit: http://www.simbainformation.com/redirect.asp?progid=87457&productid=8979991.

About Simba Information
Simba Information is widely recognized as the leading authority for market intelligence in the media and publishing industry. Simba's extensive information network delivers top quality, independent perspective on the people, events and alliances shaping the media and information industry. Simba publishes newsletters and research reports that provide key decision-makers at more than 15,000 client companies around the globe with timely news, analysis, exclusive statistics and proprietary industry forecasts. For more information, please visit www.simbainformation.com.  

Contact:
Kathy Mickey
Senior Analyst, Education Group
Simba Information
203-325-8193 x7410
[email protected]

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SOURCE Simba Information

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