Lock-in, no more.
In a letter dated July 17 to all faculty, GW urged professors to stop directing students to cheaper online resources for ordering required textbooks, instead saying that they should only refer students to the campus bookstore. The university reminded faculty members of its "contractual obligation" with Follett, the company in charge of the campus bookstore.
According to letter, Follett has the "exclusive right" to provide textbooks and other class essentials for all courses taught by the university and "alternative vendors may not be endorsed, licensed or otherwise approved or supported by the university or its faculty."
After several professors complained to top administrators for restricting faculty members' ability to advocate for their students and limiting their freedom of speech, GW sent another letter on August 11 clarifying its commitment to an affordable education.
As for why this whole controversy came about, Donald Parsons, an economics professor at GW, explained that universities are often incentivized to promote campus bookstores because they receive a commission from the sales. GW probably realized that the bookstore wasn't attracting as many customers as in the past, which would in turn result in less funds for the university.
“There’s no question that if the money were rolling in and Follett was bathed in money and the University was getting its percent, who would complain?" Parsons said. "I think surely the whole nut of this is that they looked around and found nobody is buying books at the bookstore anymore."