In a concerning development for the book industry, the United States Postal Service (USPS) filed a proposal on December 20, 2024, to eliminate Bound Printed Matter (BPM) Flats and Parcels from its services.

If implemented, this change would have far-reaching consequences for publishers, booksellers, and, most importantly, readers across America.

1. What’s Changing?
2. Impact on the Book Industry
3. Market Consolidation Concerns
4. BookScouter’s Position
5. What’s Next?

What’s Changing?

The USPS is planning to remove two critical mail services that the book industry heavily relies on:

• Bound Printed Matter (BPM) Flats
• Bound Printed Matter (BPM) Parcels

These services would be replaced with alternatives, and even the cheapest replacement option would cost approximately twice as much as current BPM rates.

Impact on the Book Industry

At BookScouter, we are deeply concerned about how these changes will affect book accessibility and affordability across the United States. Here’s why:

1. Dramatic Price Increases

The elimination of BPM services could force publishers and booksellers to switch to alternative shipping methods that could double current shipping costs. This increase in operational expenses would inevitably be passed on to consumers, potentially raising book prices by up to 50%, depending on the type of book.

2. Disproportionate Impact on Rural Communities

Rural areas would be particularly hard hit by these changes. Private shipping companies typically charge premium rates for delivery to remote locations, making books significantly more expensive for rural readers. This creates an accessibility gap that contradicts the fundamental principle of equal access to literature and education.

3. Educational Impact

The ripple effects of these changes would be felt throughout the educational system:

• Higher costs for textbooks and educational materials
• Increased expenses for school libraries
• More expensive children’s books, affecting early literacy programs
• Greater financial burden on students and educational institutions

4. Small and Medium-Sized Businesses at Risk

While major corporations like Amazon, with their own delivery infrastructure, would remain largely unaffected, small and medium-sized bookstores and publishers would face significant challenges. Many of these businesses operate on thin margins and rely heavily on affordable USPS shipping rates to remain competitive.

Market Consolidation Concerns

This change could accelerate market consolidation in the book industry. As smaller players struggle with increased operational costs, large corporations like Amazon with established logistics networks would gain even more market share. This trend threatens to reduce competition and diversity in the book market.

BookScouter’s Position

As a platform dedicated to making literature more accessible and affordable for everyone, BookScouter is deeply troubled by these developments. Our mission has always been to help readers find the best prices for books and to support a diverse, competitive book market that serves all communities.

The elimination of BPM services threatens to:

• Make books less affordable for average Americans
• Create barriers to educational resources
• Disadvantage rural communities
• Hurt small and medium-sized businesses in the book industry
• Further consolidate market power in the hands of large corporations

What’s Next?

The USPS proposal is currently under review, with implementation planned for no earlier than July 2025. BookScouter will continue to monitor this situation closely and advocate for solutions that maintain affordable access to books for all Americans.

We encourage industry stakeholders and concerned citizens to engage with their representatives and the Postal Regulatory Commission during the public comment period. The future of affordable book access in America may depend on it.

We’ll continue to update this story as new developments emerge. Follow BookScouter on Facebook and X.com for the latest updates on this critical industry issue.

The last few months have brought a lot of changes into our neck of the woods. Quite a few mergers took place, and several companies either discontinued some of their services or stopped operations completely. Please find below a digest of the latest events in the book industry.

1. No more printed textbook rentals from Amazon
2. Will There Be a Sequel to ‘Simon & Schuster Was (not) Acquired’ Blockbuster?
3. Acquisitions that Actually Happened
4. Now-defunct Companies, Some of Which We’ll Miss

No more printed textbook rentals from Amazon

The e-commerce behemoth revealed the plans to cancel the print textbook rental program back in December 2022. The program was brought to a halt on April 1, 2023. It is still possible to either purchase the already rented books or extend the rental period till September 13, 2023. 

Will There Be a Sequel to ‘Simon & Schuster Was (not) Acquired’ Blockbuster?

At the end of 2022, after a long trial, The Department of Justice blocked the acquisition of Simon & Schuster by Penguin Random House. The major reason was that the new company would control too much of the market and make the publishing industry much less competitive.

As per Bob Bakish, CEO of Simon & Schuster’s parent company Paramount Global, the court’s decision does not stop them from wanting to sell the publishing subsidiary. According to anonymous sources, the value of the potential sale is from $2 billion to $2.5 billion dollars. Despite Simon & Schuster’s record revenue last year, Paramount Global considers it a “non-core asset” and therefore seems to have no doubt about selling the business. 

Acquisitions that Actually Happened

Regnery Publishing has purchased the ISI Books imprint. The acquisition includes 85+ titles – works by J. Budziszewski, Anthony Esplen, Paul Kengor, and others. Part of the titles will be reprinted under the Regnery Gateway imprint in the future. ISI president Johnny Burtka mentioned that the acquisition “will allow ISI to concentrate on its core mission of educating young Americans for liberty while giving these enduring books a loving home where they will flourish for years to come.”

A group of investors bought New Leaf Publishing Group, a family-owned Christian book publisher. The current owners sold the business to “expand its reach to more students, families, and individuals.” 

Arcadia Publishing has acquired Applewood Book. Applewood was started in 1976 and has about 2,500 titles in its catalog. The titles are mostly reissues of original versions of historical books, such as George Washington’s Rules of Civility, a hardcover edition of the U.S. Constitution, and many others. “Applewood’s extraordinary catalog will enhance Arcadia’s ability to deliver on our mission: to connect people with their past, with their communities, and with one another,” Arcadia CEO Brittain Phillips said.

Ulysses Press has purchased VeloPress. The deal includes around 80 health and fitness-related titles, such as Running Rewired, The Triathlete’s Training Bible, and others. Ulysses plans to extend the VeloPress list by 12 new titles in 2024. “Ulysses Press is thrilled to have the opportunity to continue to grow the audience for some of the world’s best sports training books and fitness experts,” said Keith Riegert, publisher of Ulysses Press.

VitalSource, a prominent player in the realm of digital course content distribution and learning platforms, has recently acquired Akademos, a comprehensive online bookstore and course materials platform. “Together, we can expand access to learning materials for millions of students while innovating to help our partners succeed. We are ready and excited for our next chapter,” Raj Kaji, CEO of Akademos, wrote in the company blog.

Cordance, the parent company of Upright Labs, a provider of innovative multi-channel listing tools and services for online reselling, has acquired Neatoscan, Inc., a provider of product sourcing and inventory management solutions. “We are excited to bring together two industry leaders to deliver unparalleled value to our customers,” said Siera Smith, President of Upright Labs. 

Threecolts, an e-commerce management platform, purchased ScoutIQ, a retail arbitrage software, created to help Amazon sellers find profitable products quickly. “It’s a wrap! ScoutIQ has been acquired. We sold our software business after 7+ years of building, fixing, iterating, listening, and solving problems for Amazon sellers,” Caleb Roth, founder of ScoutIQ, wrote on his Instagram. 

World of Books, Sellbackyoubook.com and Secondsale.com are now part of one company group. “We’ve grown the business by more than 50% by partnering with US trade-in site, Sell Back Your Book. Together we’ll continue to help protect the environment by encouraging the reuse of books, CDs, DVDs, games and more,” is written on the World of Books website.

Now-defunct Companies, Some of Which We’ll Miss

The end of an era has arrived as Nebraska Book Company, a leading provider of course materials to colleges, closed its doors on March 1, 2023. The company had a network of 2,000+ partners and had been in business for over 100 years. However, the decline in demand for physical textbooks and the increase in demand for digital course materials made the business unprofitable and led to its closure. 

Another piece of sad news from Amazon – Book Depository, one of its divisions, shut down. It accepted its last order on April 26, 2023. The online bookstore featured more than twenty million titles in its enormous catalog. With low prices and free worldwide shipping, it was very popular among book fans and will be missed by many. 

Bookbyte, one of the oldest used textbook businesses online, went out of business. Founded in 1999, it used to be one of the largest textbook retailers on the US west coast. It helped students to rent and buy used textbooks at reasonable prices. 

Conclusion

The book industry has been facing severe challenges. Some businesses have to shut down, others manage to overcome adversities and become stronger. At BookScouter, we are committed to helping our customers stay strong and thrive in these difficult times.