Ambassador Education Solutions, which powers course materials programs for schools across the country, has enhanced its PinPoint technology, removing the complicated financial management burden of digital content programs from school and bookstore operations. Now all schools and bookstores, regardless of their preference to outsource course materials management or handle fulfillment internally, can leverage Ambassador’s PinPoint technology for a clear and accurate picture of actual digital usage to ensure they only pay what they owe.
Ambassador’s PinPoint suite originated with Pub-PinPoint, which verifies all digital materials usage and fees for schools that outsource course materials operations to Ambassador. Schools and bookstores wanting to remain independent approached the company to see if they could combine the PinPoint technology with their in-house capabilities, which was the catalyst for the newly released PinPoint-Billing. PinPoint-Billing provides the financial infrastructure for schools and bookstores that manage digital materials themselves, including student choice, Inclusive Access or Equitable Access programs. Because the PinPoint suite manages all varieties of digital and third-party course materials, it eliminates significant manual effort and creates automated efficiencies.
“Digital content programs, and specifically Inclusive Access programs, continue to grow in size and scope. While some schools and bookstores want to manage fulfillment themselves, the increasing number of adds/drops, configurations, returns, and opt-outs can make financial reconciliation feel overwhelming,” said Steven M. Blicht, CEO of Ambassador Education Solutions. “Our Course Materials Platform, RODA, brings together the financial controls, reporting and analytics for all schools and bookstores to streamline the financial backbone of these complex programs. Reconciliation is automatic and accurate.”
Using PinPoint-Billing, schools provide Ambassador with student, financial, course and materials information. Ambassador applies this information to validate publisher and content transactions and invoices against the digital licenses and access codes actually used by students within a semester or across multiple semesters. This protects schools from paying for dropped students and duplicates where a student received the same item more than once. It also ensures publishers and content providers are paid correctly for digital content used.
RODA gives schools one place to access consolidated, verified billing information. Ambassador delivers the billing files in a school’s required formats to update student accounts, including eligible student aid from all sources. Additionally, real-time and scheduled reports by campus, program, course, student and item provide beneficial insights to a school’s administrative staff, bursar’s office and bookstore.
“Digital content presents similar management challenges no matter what type of course materials program is being offered. Because schools that outsource course materials are realizing quantifiable savings with Ambassador’s Pub-PinPoint technology, it made sense to develop a similar solution for schools and independent bookstores handling fulfillment in-house. Now these schools and bookstores can appropriately scale their digital programs, so no matter how many courses or students participate, they can rely on automated billing, deeper transparency, and increased financial accuracy,” noted Blicht.
About Ambassador Education Solutions
For decades, Ambassador has made course materials simple, effective and affordable. From print and digital to OER, devices and more, Ambassador eases course materials adoption, management, delivery and access. Ambassador’s Course Materials Platform, RODA, integrates with leading SIS, LMS, financial systems, eBook readers, publishers and digital content platforms. RODA connects students with affordable course materials, streamlines operations for schools and eases account management and reconciliation for publishers, all through one easy-to-use platform. Schools and publishers trust Ambassador to improve course materials accessibility, lower operational and financial risks, and deliver usage and cost transparency. For more information, please visit AmbassadorEd.com.
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Media Contact: Kristi Emerson · 800.431.8913 · kemerson@ambassadored.com
