eCampus.com seeks to fill online textbook rental space left by Amazon

An online retailer of textbooks and course materials that once provided inventory to Amazon is picking up where the e-tail giant left off.

Before Amazon discontinued its textbook rental service in April 2023, eCampus.com had a decade-long partnership to fulfill a portion of the e-tailer’s rental business. eCampus.com has decided to maintain the inventory that once helped support Amazon's rental business, offering college students nearly one million available rental titles on its site, an availability of almost four times that of competitors.

[Read more: Amazon offers Gen Z-friendly online college store]

To rent textbooks from eCampus.com, customers can visit the website and search for desired book titles by entering the title, author, or International Standard Book Number (ISBN). The platform offers multiple rental durations and shipping options, with free shipping on all orders over $35. At the end of the rental period, customers can return their books for free or they can choose to extend their rental or purchase the textbook.

In addition to rental options, eCampus.com also offers new and used textbooks for purchase, as well as a selection of e-books and digital content. The retailer accepts digital payment options such as PayPal and Venmo at checkout.

"Students will soon recognize that eCampus.com has a comprehensive course materials selection that offers multiple rental term durations, in addition to offering new, used, and e-book options," said Clay Pickens, chief strategy officer at eCampus.com. "Students can also take advantage of additional purchasing options. These extra payment methods align well with our core demographic and represent our ongoing efforts to create the best customer experience."

Based in Lexington, Ky., eCampus.com serves over 300 schools, colleges, and universities. The company’s course material solutions suite includes full-service online bookstores, inclusive access and equitable access programs, and campus store operations and management. eCampus.com launched in 1999 and introduced its textbook rental program in 2002.

Barnes & Noble College to implement digital ‘concierge service’

Online college textbooks are a big business. Barnes & Noble College, a subsidiary of Barnes & Noble Education Inc., will launch a digital portal called First Day Complete at University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNC-Charlotte) in time for the fall 2023 academic semester.

The digital “concierge service” (as Barnes & Noble Education calls it) will deliver all course materials on or before the first day of class. This will include all required textbooks, lab manuals, access codes, digital materials and electronic books in a bundle, which Barnes & Noble estimates will produce average student savings of between 35-50%.