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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Thursday, August 11, 2005

Idea bypasses campus bookstores

By Dan Nakaso
Advertiser Staff Writer

Students head to and from classes at McCarthy Mall on the University of Hawai'i-Manoa campus. The second of two summer sessions ends tomorrow, followed by the summer commencement exercises on Sunday. The fall semester begins Aug. 22.
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A former Hawai'i Pacific University computer science student wants to get college students all over America buying and selling used textbooks without their campus bookstores.

Bob Ruggio, the 28-year-old chief executive officer of BookCurrency.com, and his three partners set up their Web site and business in 2003 to connect student booksellers with student book buyers.

Unlike other similar Web sites run by brick-and-mortar booksellers, New York-based BookCurrency.com ultimately hopes to physically connect students on the same campus to make their transactions.

"We created our Web site to solve a common student problem," Ruggio said from New York. "Our idea is to allow students to set their own book price, rather than have the bookstore tell students that we'll give you 50 percent or less of the price of the book. But instead of getting students in touch with other students nationwide, we get students in touch with other students on the same campus who need the same book."

BookCurrency.com lists some 3,000 universities nationwide, including all of the University of Hawai'i campuses, HPU, Brigham Young University-Hawai'i, Chaminade University and others such as Hawaii Business College and Heald College-Honolulu.

Sellers list the books they want to offer and wait for a potential buyer to come across them on BookCurrency.com. After both sides agree on a price, they exchange the books and report the transaction to BookCurrency.com.

The seller pays BookCurren cy.com $2 no matter whether one or more books are involved — plus 5 percent of the total transaction.

"From their dorm room, we can get them directly in touch with someone on campus," Ruggio said.

If not, they can still buy and sell books through BookCurrency .com using FedEx or UPS.