Open access textbooks and financial sustainability: A case study on Flat World Knowledge

  • John Levi Hilton III Brigham Young University
  • David Wiley Brigham Young University
Keywords: Open educational resources, open textbooks, electronic textbooks, Flat World Knowledge, open access, sustainability

Abstract

Many college students and their families are concerned about the high costs of textbooks. A company called Flat World Knowledge both gives away and sells open-source textbooks in a way it believes to be financially sustainable. This article reports on the financial sustainability of the Flat World Knowledge open-source textbook model after one year of operation.

Author Biographies

John Levi Hilton III, Brigham Young University
John Hilton III is a doctoral student in Instructional Psychology and Technology at Brigham Young University (BYU). He also teaches part-time with BYU's Department of Ancient Scripture.
David Wiley, Brigham Young University
Associate Professor, Instructional Psychology and Associate Professor, Instructional Psychology and Technology Brigham Young University
Published
2011-06-29
How to Cite
Hilton III, J. L., & Wiley, D. (2011). Open access textbooks and financial sustainability: A case study on Flat World Knowledge. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 12(5), 18-26. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v12i5.960
Section
Research Articles