Bowker and MBS Textbook Exchange Announce Partnership to Trade Bibliographic and Textbook Demand Data

NEW PROVIDENCE, NJ--(Marketwire - September 12, 2007) - Bowker, the global leader in bibliographic information management, and MBS Textbook Exchange, the industry leader in wholesale textbook distribution, announced they have entered into an exclusive agreement in which the two companies will partner with each other to provide complementary data streams that will connect higher education publishers with textbook retailing trends and retailers with reliable bibliographic information.

The first phase of this joint initiative is designed to integrate Bowker's higher education point-of-sale database with the textbook demand data previously offered through MBS' Textbook Demand Information System (TDIS). This will allow publishers unprecedented vision into what specific textbooks and academic materials are being ordered and how many are being sold.

A second phase of the partnership will include the co-development of an enhanced Textbook Management System, exclusive to MBS, focused at retailers of college textbooks. More details on this initiative will be announced later this year.

"This is a terrific partnership because it allows both companies to draw from our respective core competencies to create a robust offering for the college textbook marketplace that neither one of us could create on our own," said Kelly Gallagher, general manager of the business intelligence unit for Bowker. "As a developer of best-of-breed business intelligence tools, Bowker will have the benefit of expanding our product for the important higher education publishing market."

According to Gallagher, the new "demand data" from MBS will be integrated with Bowker's PubTrack Higher Education, a web-based business intelligence tool for higher education publishing professionals. PubTrack Higher Education is Bowker's sales analysis resource for the higher education market that provides timely and accurate data regarding textbook sales, tracks books-in-use on college campuses nationwide, and analyzes market share data in ways that matter to publishers.

"For the past seven years, our TDIS platform has provided publishers with a window on accurate research that can be used by editors, marketing managers, inventory analysts and other professionals whose job requires them to know what titles are in demand in the college market," said Dennis Flanagan, Chief Executive Officer at MBS Direct. "This partnership with Bowker will allow us to work together to deliver the most robust business intelligence resource ever offered to higher ed publishers."

As for the textbook retailers, according to Flanagan, the enhanced Textbook Management System will introduce efficiencies that can only be gained by providing retailers direct access to the largest source of bibliographic information, Books-in-Print. "We're excited about expanding our TA2 Textbook Management System as well as our Insite internet commerce solutions," said Flanagan. "Providing efficiencies to college retailers is an important part of our business and is good for the industry as a whole."

About Bowker

Bowker is the world's leading source for bibliographic information. The company provides searching, analytical, promotional, and ordering services to publishers, booksellers, libraries, and patrons through national and international brands, including: Books In Print®, Global Books In Print®, Syndetic Solutions™, Pubnet®, PubEasy®, PubTrack™ and more. In the U.S., Australia and Puerto Rico, Bowker is also the exclusive ISBN and SAN Agency and a DOI registration agency for the publishing industry. Bowker is headquartered in New Providence, New Jersey, with operations in East Grinstead, England, and Port Melbourne, Australia. For more company details, please visit www.Bowker.com.

About MBS Textbook Exchange

Since its inception in 1973, MBS Textbook Exchange has become the industry leader in wholesale textbook distribution, bookstore management systems, and digital textbook solutions. MBS serves more than 4,000 academic institutions nationwide and processes more than 12 million used and new textbooks in our warehouse annually. In our more than 30 years as the standard-bearer, MBS has earned a peerless reputation for excellence and innovation. We are committed to bringing our partners and customers the absolute best in service, support, and savings. For more information, please go to www.mbsbooks.com

Contact Information: Media Contact: Daryn Teague Teague Communications 661.297.5292