College textbook company filed Chapter 11 today...

[G5052]

With all of the discussion about how expensive textbooks are, I thought some would be interested in this:

 

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2013-07-02/cengage-learning-inc-files-for-chapter-11-bankruptcy

 

Cengage is supposedly the second largest textbook publisher in the U.S. For the last 7-8 years we've exclusively used their materials in my department at the local community college.

 

We had all kinds of problems getting the faculty copies of new textbooks from them this summer. Mine were supposed to arrive in mid-May and finally showed up late last week. I hope that doesn't indicate a trend of supply problems in the fall for the students and issues with the online materials we're supposed to have.

[Lanny]

The problems you are having with them may have absolutely NOTHING to do with the fact that they are now in Bankruptcy proceedings... Probably due to other problems within the company. I noted this, when I read the article: "Cengage develops teaching materials for colleges, schools, libraries and corporations, and provides print and electronic publishing. Hansen, who joined the publisher in September, has shifted to more digital products and subscriptions as students move away from buying new textbooks."

 

The web hosting provider that we have been using since December 2001 entered Chapter 11 last year. I have not noticed any difference in the services they provide to us and we want them to survive, so we continue to be their customers.

 

I think you or someone in the C.C. should contact your Sales Rep at Cengage and explain the problems you are having with them. If they can't resolve the problems, you need to find another provider. GL

[G5052]

I think you or someone in the C.C. should contact your Sales Rep at Cengage and explain the problems you are having with them. If they can't resolve the problems, you need to find another provider. GL

Yes, we've been in constant touch with our textbook rep. He claimed that they were having supply problems at the printing plant, and then our books were supposedly sent to a community college in California. And the bookstore said that they have received *none* of the Cengage books they have on order, although sometimes they don't come until early August anyway.

 

I've been working with the book all day, trying to get things set up, and am a little concerned that there is no table of contents and no glossary, although I was able to find chapter glossaries in one of the online packages. I guess that will have to do.

 

It will be interesting. Textbook orders have to be made more than six months in advance, so I don't think we have time to pick another. The rep has already said that if we don't get the student books, he'll see if he can work something out to get some of the chapters to the students electronically.

[Lanny]

Eek....   Great that you know about the problem(s) and the looming disaster...    Could be that they didn't pay the printing plant, or, that there are other issues. I suspect there are other issues. Sounds like the textbook wasn't even edited and proofed well.  We just waited, an extra 7 months, for a brand new Online Social Studies course to be finished. Quality takes a lot of time...  Try to find a more reliable company for the future, but, in the mean time, good luck in getting thru this immediate problem.   I know if you need to buy in quantity, it is a much larger issue than when we buy one (1) textbook for DD.  If it is a brand new textbook,  your only hope is to get it directly from them, or from a distributor, or, from some other school that  might have received them and be willing to sell them to your school.