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	Vol.7, No 11, September 16, 1999
	Bookstore sales up despite Web stores By Jose Corado Daily Forty-Niner As online book sellers gain territory in the great textbook war, university bookstores are refusing to retreat. Online textbook stores entice price-conscious students with discounts of up to 40 percent and free delivery. Despite the onslaught of online textbook vendors, the University Bookstore at Cal State Long Beach is having a good semester. "We've been pleased with the start of the semester," said Fred Neely, director of the Bookstore. However, "It is real hard to judge because we don't know what the exact enrollment figure is. It's going to take about one year to know."   New textbook sales are up 5 percent in the Bookstore. Used textbook sales are down 1 percent.  That translates to an increase of nearly 3 percent from last fall. Neely said online vendors offer a lot of nice things, but students should verify prices, find out whether the books will arrive in a timely manner, and be aware of what return policies these vendors have. Varapa Rakrachakarn, a graduate student in business administration, said she ordered a book about two weeks ago for a business class from A1 Books, an online bookstore, and hasnít received it yet. "I'm having a test soon, and that means that I'm gonna have to buy the book somewhere else," she said. The National Association of College Stores says campus stores still have the best deals. Last year, NACS compared prices on the Internet and at campus stores for 50 textbooks. Of the 44 books they were able to find on the Web, the college stores offered the lowest prices on 38 percent of the books. Students also need to know the Bookstore is not here just to make money, Neely said. Revenues generated through the Bookstore go back into improving services for students, faculty and staff at CSULB. "I was not able to get a book for my intercultural class in the bookstore," said Jeannie Tomilowitz, a graduate student. "They kept saying that they were going to have it, but they never did. I had to buy it online." "However, I prefer buying my books at the [CSULB] Bookstore," she said. As e-commerce picked up last fall, several online players burst into the scene. The five major textbook vendors include Bigwords.com; Varsitybooks.com; efollett, the bookstore distributor of Follet; ecampus; and Textbooks.com, owned by Barnes & Noble. These sites are fighting fiercely to become the preferred venue among students, who collectively spend more than $3 billion annually on textbooks. "We offer students the best value for their money," said John Bates, co-founder of Bigwords, one of the leading textbook retailers that started up last August. "We offer the most convenient, easy and affordable way for students to purchase their textbooks." Bigwords contends it has the lowest prices, free and fast delivery, and the best customer service. Bates said that as students become more confident with their computers, they will become more confident with shopping online.		CSU raises admission standards Students mingle with employers High Schoolers focus of new bill Bookstore sales up despite Web stores Bill to keep guns from mentally unstable Assembly bill may reduce area code confusion Cultural center celebrates diversity on campus Police need policing Out-of-wedlock birth decline at what cost Mr. Mike comes through Magic wins with 'Thuggin' High school ballers show off their skills Coach Gimmillaro looking forward to challenge Best of the West face-off at USC Fall 99 ISSUES DAILY 49ER HOMEPAGE
Forty-Niner Publications, Department of Journalism, California State University, Long Beach ©1999 All rights reserved.