Booksfree

Infobox Company
name = Booksfree

type = Private
genre =
foundation = September 2000
founder = W. Douglas Ross & Andrew E. Bilinski
location_city = Vienna, Virginia
location_country = United States
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industry = Electronic Commerce
products =
services = Online book rental
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homepage = [http://www.booksfree.com www.booksfree.com]
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Booksfree is an online book rental company, the first to offer flat rate rental-by-mail to customers in the United Statescite news | title=BOOKSFREE.COM | url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-28465472_ITM | publisher=Washington Business Journal | date=2000-09-29 | accessdate=2008-04-19] cite news | title=Hokies chase the dot-com dream | url=http://www.vtmagazine.vt.edu/fall01/feature4.html | first=Kimberly | last=Richards-Thomas | publisher=Virginia Tech Magazine | date=Fall 2001 | accessdate=2008-04-19] . Established in 2000 and headquarted in Vienna, Virginia, it boasts an inventory of over 100,000 titles and more than 13,000 subscriberscite news|title=Online lending library calls Vienna home | url=http://www.booksfree.com/fairfax_article.shtml | first=Monty | last=Tayloe | date=2007-04-11 | accessdate=2008-04-14 | publisher=The Fairfax County Times] . On June 8 2007 the company announced that it had delivered its millionth book.cite web|title=Online Book Rental Service Reaches Milestone with Delivery of One Millionth Book | url=http://www.booksfree.com/one_millionth_article.shtml | date=2007-06-08 | accessdate=2008-04-14 | publisher=BooksFree]

Corporate history

The company was founded in 2000 by Douglas Ross, who had previously run a computer systems company, and Andrew Bilinski, who had worked for the US Air Force, EDS & BDM International. Ross originally come up with the idea for Booksfree in 1999, and after selling his company was looking at what to do next. US$1 million of start-up funding was provided by friends & associates.cite news|title=The Bookmobile Reinvented; Va. Start-Up Booksfree.com Delivers Dime Novels, Adjusted for Inflation | url=http://www.booksfree.com/washpost_article.shtml | date=2002-10-02 | accessdate=2008-04-14 | publisher=The Washington Post]

Business model

The company has been described as "the books version of Netflix",cite news|title=Book Junkies, Rejoice! | url=http://www.booksfree.com/oprah_article.shtml | date=2007-03-01 | accessdate=2008-04-14 | publisher=O the Oprah Magazine] and therefore has a similar business model to online DVD rental companies. Titles are offered in paperback, CD & MP3 CD audiobook formats. Separate monthly membership plans are offered for each medium starting at $9.99 for books, $12.99 for MP3-CD audiobooks & $22.49 for CD & MP3 CD audiobooks. A combination membership encompassing all media is also available. Each plan limits the number of items that can be checked out at any one time. Subscribers can pay a higher monthly fee in order to increase that limit. It is also possible to rent individual titles without having a membership.cite web | title=Available Membership Plans | url=http://www.booksfree.com/available_plans.shtml | publisher=Booksfree | accessdate=2008-04-14]

Memberships

Subscriptions to the site have grown from 4,000 in 2002 and 5,000 in 2003cite news | title=Online Diary - Rent A Book | url=http://tech2.nytimes.com/mem/technology/techreview.html?res=9A02E4DC163FF93BA35756C0A9659C8B63 | first=Pamela | last=Licalzi O'Connell | publisher=New York Times | date=2003-05-08 | accessdate=2008-04-14] to over 13,000 in 2007. The vast majority of Bookfree's subscribers are women, and the company has received coverage in many magazines aimed primarily at a female readership such as Woman's Day, First for Woman, and O, The Oprah Magazine.cite web | title=Media Coverage | url=http://www.booksfree.com/articles.shtml | publisher=Booksfree | accessdate=2008-04-14]

Competitive environment

The company's founders were quoted in 2002 as considering their main competition to be libraries and online book retailers, noting that each has drawbacks compared with Booksfree. Comparisons between the services generally focus upon the availability of audiobooks from Booksfree and their decision to not carry hardcover books.cite news | title=Netflix Book Model Draws Competitors | url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6456823.html | first=Lynn | last=Andriani | publisher=Publishers Weekly | date=2007-07-02 | accessdate=2008-04-14]

References