CourseSmart Enhances Android Application Offering Significant New Features to Maximize eTextbook Experience

SAN MATEO, Calif., May 20, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- CourseSmart®, a leading Educational Services Platform and the world's largest provider of digital course materials, has announced today CourseSmart eTextbooks, a significant upgrade to its dedicated mobile application specifically designed for the Android Operating System (AOS). In response to customer demand, CourseSmart's new Android app features both online and offline access to digital course materials, ensuring that students and faculty who rely on their Android mobile devices are never without the materials they need.

A 2013 report from IDC and Gartner found that last year, the Android market alone occupied over 68 percent of the market for mobile applications.  CourseSmart eTextbooks is reflective of the company's long-standing commitment to the platform as well as a response to the growing market demand for Android applications.  CourseSmart's enhanced Android app provides real time mobile access to students, even while an eTextbook download is occurring. CourseSmart users will also have the ability to checkout titles for offline use and sync notes and highlights across the reading system, ensuring access to their own notations regardless of which device they use.

"We have been a leader in the Android space for a long time, and our new application takes that commitment to the next level, offering consumers several highly-anticipated new features," said Sean Devine, CEO of CourseSmart.   "As mobile devices continue to proliferate, we will maintain our track record of offering innovation and convenience to both Android and IOS users."

CourseSmart eTextbooks is available for free and leverages the unique capabilities of the devices running the AOS to provide a truly advanced eTextbook experience, including the ability to:

• Access digital course materials when connected to the internet or offline,
• Add highlights,
• Read while you download your eTextbook,
• Skim thumbnails or full pages,
• Add, edit and synchronize your notes and highlights as you study online or offline,
• View your notes and highlights during an open book exam,
• Find what you need using keyword search while online, and
• Get a true digital equivalent of your textbook.
• Reading experience is streamlined to have similar look and feel as browser-based reader

Other original features of CourseSmart's eTextbooks include the ability to search for a topic within a single book, zoom in on text and graphs, scroll through or jump to individual pages, and view, add and edit text notes among others.

CourseSmart eTextbooks for Android is designed for AOS and provides students and faculty with access to all of their digital course materials on any Android enabled smart phone, netbook and tablet including the most popular Android-run devices: the Nexus 4, Nexus 7, Motorola Droid, Samsung Fascinate, HTC Droid Incredible, HTC Droid Eris, HTC myTouch 3G Slider, HTC Evo and Samsung Galaxy 7.

CourseSmart eTextbooks for Android is available for free from the Google Play store and can be accessed at http://www.coursesmart.com/go/mobile. Additionally, in an effort to protect the student, faculty and institutional users of our App, CourseSmart's mobile privacy policy has been certified by TRUSTe.

About CourseSmart®
CourseSmart is a leading Educational Services Platform and the only provider of digital course materials able to combine curriculum, content and delivery into a single solution. Founded in 2007, the San Mateo, Calif.-based company provides services to four business segments: online direct retail for students; indirect distribution of course materials to students through bookstores; online faculty textbook evaluation services; and institutional solutions for faculty and students that are integrated within campus technology ecosystems. CourseSmart improves the educational experience by offering all users, including those with print-related disabilities, any-time, anywhere access to the course content they need. With more than 90% of the same core titles offered by major print publishers, the company's eTextbooks can be purchased for up to 60% less than the cost of new print textbooks. For more information about CourseSmart, visit the company's Web site at www.coursesmart.com.

Media Contact:
Jessica Nelson
kwittken + company
(646) 747-7141
[email protected]

SOURCE CourseSmart