“High costs are limiting too many students from being able to access and succeed in their learning,” said Hansen. Hansen said that lowering the cost of course materials for students was a key factor driving the decision to introduce Cengage Unlimited. The College Board estimates that the average annual cost of books and supplies for students at four-year-public colleges is much higher, at $1,298 - though it is noted this figure could be lowered by buying used textbooks or renting. In addition to access to Cengage ebooks, digital platforms and study guides, students will have the option to rent print versions of the course materials for free, excluding a $7.99 shipping fee.Ĭengage already offers an extensive ebook and print rental program, but CEO Michael Hansen said in an interview that Cengage Unlimited would offer an alternative to the “traditional and costly approach of paying for each course’s materials individually.”Īccording to statistics from the National Association of College Stores, students spent an average of $579 on their required course materials during the 2016-17 academic year. Print sales have been heavily disrupted, however, by the introduction of rental programs, piracy, the sale of secondhand books and the failure by some students to purchase textbooks at all due to prohibitively high costs. The new strategy is a notable departure from the traditional publishing sales model, which historically has relied on the sale of individual print textbooks. For students taking three or four courses a semester with assigned course materials from Cengage, the subscription could offer hundreds of dollars of savings a year, versus buying or renting the products individually.Ĭengage described the introduction of the Netflix-style subscription service in a press release as a “bold move” the company has set a strategic goal of being 90 percent digital by 2019. For 12 months’ access the price is $179.99, and for two years the price is $239.99. The new offer, called Cengage Unlimited, will give students access to more than 20,000 Cengage products across 70 disciplines and 675 course areas for $119.99 a semester. Cengage, the publisher and technology company, is introducing a subscription service that will enable students to access Cengage’s entire digital portfolio for one set price, no matter how many products they use.

Cengage digital learning