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Barnes and Noble to close its Nook ebook store in the UK
Barnes and Noble has decided to lay down its arms and stop competing with Amazon for ebook and e-reader sales in the UK. The bookstore operator has announced it will stop selling digital content, including fiction and non-fiction, magazines and videos, from March 15th, passing customers onto Sainsbury's Entertainment on Demand service instead. Until then, Nook owners can purchase and download any remaining content they wish to keep on their device -- either directly through one of Nook's e-readers, or via the Nook Reading App for iOS and Android.
Samsung's big Galaxy Tab 4 gets the Barnes & Noble treatment
We weren't terribly fond of Samsung and Barnes & Noble's first tablet mashup, but it seems at least a few people were. If you happen to fall into that category, congratulations -- that odd couple has something else that might be up your alley. The new Galaxy Tab 4 Nook 10.1 is technically the largest Nook ever released (only because Samsung already did the heavy lifting with design and production) and once again it's basically a stock tablet with BN apps like Nook Library and Nook Shop sprinkled into the mix for good measure. Everything else -- from the 1.2GHz Qualcomm chipset running the show, to the 10.1-inch display running at 1280x800, to the full eye-searing load of Samsung software tweaks -- is a well-known quantity so you'll know exactly what you're getting into. On the plus side at least, the Nook-ified version of the Tab 4 10.1 costs the same $199 as the bog-standard version (after instant rebate, at least) and comes with $200 of sweet, sweet content gratis. Interest piqued? You can pick up yours starting today, but you should only do so after thinking about it really, really hard.
Barnes & Noble slashes Nook tablet prices in the UK
Bargain hunting? Good, because Barnes & Noble has just hacked down the price of its Nook HD range in the UK. The 7-inch Nook HD will now set you back just £79 for the 8GB edition and £99 for the 16GB version, while the 9-inch HD+ is now available for £129 (16GB) or £149 (32GB). We're not sure if this is a Touchpad-style fire sale or if the bookseller is prepping for its traditional autumn refresh (albeit with a third-party tablet this time 'round) -- but either way, the Nook is a great piece of hardware for under a ton.
Barnes & Noble founder abandons plan to buy back retail business
Barnes & Noble's "founder"* Leonard Riggio has conceded that his plans to rescue the firm have been iced. Thanks to those same SEC regulations that tipped us to his intentions, the company's majority shareholder has admitted that he won't attempt his ambitious rescue of the ailing retailer. In a statement, Riggio urges B&N to push the Nook tablet, serve its 10 million-strong customer base and build out the company's struggling retail business. At the same time, Barnes & Noble let slip that at least one new Nook device will arrive before the holiday season, presumably the first that'll be produced by a third party -- but let's be honest, it's not looking good. *He founded the book chain that would buy the Barnes & Noble name, pedantry fans.
Barnes & Noble intros buy-one-get-one Nook book offer, only valid in stores
Well, this process seems a bit counterintuitive, eh? This morning, Barnes & Noble introduced a new scheme for getting Nook customers to visit the company's retail stores. The promotion nets you one free e-book when you purchase another, but -- and this is where the offer tripped us up a bit -- you can only make your electronic purchase with a cashier in a physical store. The deal will be up for grabs every weekend, and titles are set to change. There are currently 20 books on offer (available this Saturday and Sunday only), including hits like Along Came a Spider by James Patterson and Bossypants by Tina Fey. Once you make your selections, you'll receive an email with access codes (assuming the rep managed to input your data correctly), at which point you'll need to visit a dedicated Barnes & Noble site to receive your books. Easy peasy.
Amazon's bookish top-level domain hunt irks publishers, Barnes & Noble
Publishers represented by the Authors Guild and Association of American Publishers have filed objections to Amazon's pursuit of new generic top-level domains ".book," ".author" and ".read." While some of those gTLDs have already come under fire from entire countries, the influential book groups told gatekeeper ICANN that "placing such generic domains in private hands is plainly anticompetitive," adding that it would allow "already dominant, well-capitalized companies" to abuse their market power. ICANN plans to assign rights to organizations or companies to manage domain suffixes like the current ".com" or ".org" and firms like Google, Microsoft and Amazon have sought names like ".app" and "movie," often in competition with each other. Competitor Barnes & Noble filed its own protest, saying that Amazon "would use control of these TLDs to stifle competition in the bookselling and publishing industries." If such protests are persuasive enough, companies could lose not only the domain name in question, but 20 percent of the $185,000 application fee -- admittedly pocket change for outfits like Amazon.
Nook leads decline as Barnes & Noble Q3 2013 revenue down 8.8 percent to $2.2 billion
Currently the subject of many a rumor, Barnes & Noble just announced its quarterly results for Q3 2013 (its current fiscal quarter), showing what many expected: revenue is down almost 9 percent over last year to $2.2 billion, with gross earnings showing a precipitous 63 percent decline to $55.5 million. Despite well regarded (and priced) tablets, Nook business took one of the biggest hits, taking in only $316 million compared to $427 million over last year, a decline of nearly 26 percent. The company recently denied innuendo that it might be stepping away from Nook hardware altogether, but said in today's statement that it'll be "calibrating its business model" to look at reducing costs in the segment. However, with other expenses considered, the company has dropped $47 million so far this year, compared to a loss of only $11 million at the same time last year -- a trend which the Amazon competitor will need to put the brakes on, one way or the other.
Barnes & Noble dispatches Nook Bluetooth speaker through FCC
Barnes & Noble and its Nook may be the subject of many a rumor of late, but that's not stopping the tablet-maker from its business -- which now includes Bluetooth speakers, apparently. We just spotted this previously unseen bad boy lurking in the FCC's antechambers packing the 2.4GHz Bluetooth bands and a rechargeable battery. That'd give some portable audio accompaniment to your Nook HD or other Bluetooth device (like the iPhone and iPod it was also tested with), though we're not sure how B&N's planning to market it. There's now a listing sans photos or other info parked on its site (see MC link), so you might soon be able to read yourself to sleep with that free book.
Barnes & Noble founder pondering bid to buy back retail business, hive off Nook Media
Just 12 hours after (already denied) rumors circulated that Barnes & Noble may ditch its Nook business, the company has had to make an announcement concerning its retail division. Thanks to SEC regulations, the company has had to 'fess up that majority shareholder and "founder*" Leonard Riggio is pondering buying the brick-and-mortar retail business -- presumably hiving off the Nook brand as a separate entity. Of course, this could easily just be the rattling of sabers by a disgruntled founder (and not for the first time of late), or we might see the bookseller cleft in two parts in the near future. Either way, we'll be watching with great interest. * He founded the book chain that would buy the Barnes & Noble name.
Barnes & Noble brings Nook Video to the UK, first to offer UltraViolet in the old country
Barnes & Noble have kept its "early December" promise to bring the Nook Video service to the UK. The company has signed deals with heavy-hitters like the BBC, HBO and Warner Bros., so Game of Thrones and The Dark Knight Rises are ready and gagging to be seen. It's also the first to arrive in Blighty with full-fat UltraViolet access, enabling you to watch your (compatible) purchased DVDs and Blu-rays without all of that fiddly ripping and re-encoding. If you haven't snapped up one of the company's Nook HD tablets yet, you'd better get writing that letter to Santa.
Barnes & Noble reports Q2 2013 earnings: digital content sales up 38%, Nook unit rakes $160 million
Barnes & Noble's Nook unit didn't have its greatest quarter. The $160 million in revenue the new Microsoft-backed spin off raked in was slightly better than last year's $152 million, but still a significant drop from $220 million. In a sign of the growing ubiquity of e-readers however, digital content sales were up 38 percent while the units overall revenue was up just 6 percent. Of course the Nook is still losing money, having cut $51 million from the company's bottom line. If you step outside of the digital realm things are looking slightly better for the book purveyor, as profits were up to $65 million -- a 15.6 percent increase over the same time period last year. As we enter the holiday season things should start to look up for B&N and there were good signs during the four day shop-stravaganza from Black Friday to Cyber Monday as sales of Nook hardware doubled from last year. For all the fun financial details hit up the source.
Nook app packs new features on iOS and Android, makes UK debut
Barnes & Noble's Nook app has reached version 3.3 on iOS and Android, bringing a handful of new features in tow. Headlining the iOS update are screen magnification and support for Apple's VoiceOver feature, which can assist the blind and visually impaired by reading content aloud. The app has also been gussied up for the iPhone 5's additional screen real estate. Both Android and iOS flavors of the application pack language support for French, Italian, German, Spanish and British English -- and indeed they've now cozied up to the Nook's UK storefront following the arrival of the latest hardware in that land a few days back. If you're fixing to download the spruced up app, Barnes & Noble recommends syncing your library before making the leap.
PSA: Barnes & Noble's Nook HD, HD+ tablets are now available in the UK
Following the arrival of Barnes & Noble's e-reader products in the UK, today's the day that the company's tablets follow suit. The Nook HD and HD+ are a pair of tasty little high-definition tablets, which can be snagged at stores such as Argos, Sainsbury's and John Lewis. The 7-inch HD can be yours for £159 with 8GB storage or £189 for 16GB, while the HD+ is priced at £229 for 16GB and £269 for 32GB.
EA bringing more games to Barnes & Noble's Nook HD and Nook HD+
Nook HD and HD+ owners will be very happy to know that more gaming titles from Electronic Arts are on the way, with a couple even being available as we speak. Earlier today, the renowned developer announced its Plant vs. Zombies and Bejeweled 2 are now compatible with Barnes & Noble's newest pair of slates, while other EA titles like Real Racing 2, Tetris, Monopoly and The Game of Life are expected to launch "through the holiday season." Both Plants vs. Zombies and Bejeweled 2 are up for download now for $5 and $3, respectively, and you can snag your favorite one from the source link below.
Nook HD review: a high-def tablet with the heart of a reader
Barnes & Noble knows where it stands in the tablet race. Sure, the company has been plugging away at the space since the day the Nook Color made its transformation into a full-fledged tablet, but the Nook, it seems, is rarely mentioned in the same breath as the Kindle Fire or Nexus 7, when discussing low-cost tablets. As such, the company seems to rarely mention its devices without discussing the competition -- Amazon in particular. In fact, at the launch event for the Nook HD and HD+, reps trotted out Kindle Fire HDs at every possible opportunity. Seeing the two devices side by side, there's no question that Nook trumps the Fire in a number of categories, and the bookseller has gone a ways toward making the Nook HD stand out in a field full of bigger players. For one thing, the device is far more focused on the reading experience than the competition, a fact reflected in both hardware and UI decisions. The company has also taken a more aggressive approach toward marketing the device toward families. The question, then, is whether these features are enough to capture marketshare from the more prominent devices. See how the Nook HD stacks up after the break. %Gallery-169588%
PSA: Nook Simple Touch and Simple Touch with Glowlight now on sale in the UK
Barnes & Noble's arrival in the UK has been so well-telegraphed, you might be surprised to learn that today's the day the units actually launch. You'll be able to pick up a Nook Simple Touch or awkwardly-titled Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight from retailers such as John Lewis, Sainsbury's and on the company's new Nook.co.uk site. Access to Barnes & Noble's 2.5 million title e-book library will set you back £79 for the base model and £109 for the glow-in-the-dark version.
Barnes & Noble's Nook HD gets splayed all over the internet by the FCC
Barnes & Noble is eager to ensure its Nook HD tablets are passed safe for consumption by humans. That's why one of the slates has just been ushered out of the FCC's underground bunker after being torn into tiny pieces. Of course, our boys in blue generously shared the pictures for us all to enjoy, and we'd be remiss if we didn't include them here -- after all, it's what's inside that counts.
How would you change the Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight?
Barnes & Noble's Simple Touch with Glowlight was here long before Amazon's glow-in-the-dark offering, and has found its way onto plenty of your nightstands. We thought it was great, except wishing it was cheaper and had 3G, and since the company has remedied the former if not the latter gripe. However, has the last six months of reading been totally blissful for you? We're inviting you to place yourself in the hirsute shoes of CEO William Lynch and tell us what you'd change if you were in charge.
Barnes & Noble and Microsoft complete Nook Media LLC partnership
Barnes & Noble and Microsoft's mutual appreciation is getting a lot more real. The duo issued a joint announcement today, marking the completion of Nook Media LLC, a "strategic partnership" made up of the bookseller's digital and college wings. The news comes after a $300 million investment in the pairing. Further plans for Nook Media are vague at the moment, as the companies note, "There can be no assurance that the review will result in a strategic separation or the creation of a stand-alone public company." Until such key things are decided, B&N for one doesn't plan on elaborating. You can find a bit more, however, in the press release after the break.
B&N makes the Nook Simple Touch with GlowLight's $20 price drop official
The Nook's $20 price drop is more than the whim of a few major retailers -- it's Barnes & Noble's new MSRP. Following Walmart and Target's recent discounts, the company's own website is now listing the glowing e-reader at its new $119 price. The reduction is almost assuredly in preparation for Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite, as B&N's announcement makes a point of bragging about the Simple Touch with Glowlight's included AC adapter and aversion to built-in ads. See the punchy press release for yourself after the break.
