Defendant publishers and booksellers in the antitrust lawsuit brought by a group of independent college bookstores filed a motion on April 24 to dismiss all claims. McGraw-Hill, Cengage, and Pearson, along with Barnes & Noble Education and Follett, argue that selling digital Inclusive Access courseware solely through BN Ed and Follett stores isn’t anti-competitive or a “long-running conspiracy,” as the plaintiffs had alleged in their complaint, filed in January. The reality, the publishers maintain, is that they have legitimately increased competition through their digital offerings, and indie bookstores have failed to keep up. Inclusive Access, they say, is “both procompetitive […]
