A new crook is in town.

But instead of stealing money, it is helping students save it.

BookThief.com is a national Web site that charges 99 cents per listing for students to buy and sell textbooks.

Deborah Gray, associate marketing professor, and CMU 1990 alumnus Gary Chubb created the site that went live Nov. 26.

“We decided to start the Web site as a means to help students save money in buying and selling their textbooks,” Gray said.

Users can list up to five classes and the books needed. The site will alert students when their book requests are available.

The Web site also features the capability to buy and sell furniture, appliances and lofts – and even post upcoming parties.

“Books are our core competency, but anything that college students would want to buy and sell can be listed,” Gray said.

Chubb said because the listings are localized, it gives students more options to exchange books.

“All (students) have to do is pick up the phone and meet the other person to make the transaction,” he said.

Student Book Exchange General Manager John Belco said BookThief.com is nothing new. He said there are already Web sites that buy and sell textbooks.

“Anytime someone enters the fray, there’s some concern about it, but we just have to focus on what we do – which is offer buy back lists and a fair price,” he said.

Belco said the major difference between Web sites like BookThief.com and bookstores is the money in students’ hands.

“Students can bring in their books and we’re not charging them to sell it,” he said. “Plus, you don’t have to pay to ship it out.”

Gray said creating BookThief.com is important for students because the cost of textbooks has risen exponentially over the years.

Chubb said the company’s goal is to allow students the opportunity to share textbooks with one another to gain a profit, and argued students will receive more money by sharing books than buybacks at bookstores.

BookThief.com also is starting a Facebook.com campaign, asking students to add a link or mention to the Web site to their profiles.

“We just want to get the word-of-mouth out to the students,” he said. “We’ll really make a difference in the amount of money they can put in their pocket from one semester to the next.”

The site is accessible to 3,100 colleges and universities in the U.S. and about 200 in Canada.

news@cm-life.com

E-mail the author: defaultuser