Follett Partners With Random House to Offer Popular Titles in ebook Format

MCHENRY, Ill., Aug. 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Continuing its ongoing commitment to expand and enhance its PreK-12 digital solutions to support learning, Follett has partnered with Random House, Inc., the world's largest English language trade publisher, to offer new and popular ebook titles to school libraries.

Follett's ebook customers are now able to purchase Random House ebooks and lend them to students.  The partnership gives librarians the opportunity to enhance their collections with many of the most sought-after titles, such as Rachel Hartman's "Seraphina" and Christopher Paul Curtis' "The Watsons Go To Birmingham – 1963".

"We are excited about the 36,000-plus titles published by Random House, Inc. imprints and the outside publishers we distribute that our new partnership with Follett will bring into the school library marketplace," said Skip Dye, vice president, Library and Academic Marketing, Random House, Inc. "We share their customers' high regard for the quality and consistency of service to their constituents."

Random House features many of the top titles--fiction, biographies, classics and non-fiction texts--that engage and interest students, and encourage them to continue their development outside of the classroom setting.

"This exciting partnership with Random House supports Follett's strategy of offering our customers the most robust ebook offering in the industry," said Todd Litzsinger, president, Content Solutions and Services, Follett.   "This is one more example of Random House and Follett working closely together by offering schools Random House's high-quality content that meets their educational needs in a new, exciting ebook format on Follett's platform."

Used by 28 million students at more than 42,000 schools in the U.S. and other countries, Follett ebooks provide educators the curriculum-focused content and tools they need to support the Common Core and other state standards. Follett ebooks are managed through FollettShelf, the company's free, cloud-based virtual bookshelf, and Follett's market-leading Destiny Library Manager – both of which provide reporting tools on usage as well as the ability to manage patrons and checkouts. All Follett ebooks use the proprietary Follett Digital Reader, a consistent ebook reading environment that provides students with a built-in dictionary and the capability to take notes and bookmark pages.

A 2012 survey by Library Journal of electronic book penetration and use among PreK-12 school libraries revealed that two-thirds of the schools that purchase ebooks buy them from Follett. FollettShelf is the digital shelf of choice at 76 percent of elementary schools, 67 percent of middle schools and 59 percent of high schools.  

To learn more about Follett, visit www.follettlearning.com.

About Follett's K-12 Business
Follett is the largest provider of educational materials and technology solutions to PreK-12 libraries, classrooms, learning centers and school districts in the United States, and a major supplier to educational institutions worldwide.  Follett distributes books, reference materials, digital resources, ebooks and audiovisual materials, as well as pre-owned textbooks. Follett also is one of the leading providers of integrated educational technology for the management of physical and digital assets, the tracking, storing and analyzing of academic data, and digital learning environment tools for the classroom focusing on student achievement.

About Follett
Since 1873, Follett has served as the trusted partner in education for students and educators at all levels of learning. Today Follett delivers physical and digital learning materials, retail services, school content and management systems to more than 70,000 early childhood, primary and secondary schools, and on more than 1,000 college campuses.  Headquartered in River Grove, Illinois, Follett is a $2.7 billion privately held company.

SOURCE Follett Corporation