Archive for the ‘Barnes and Noble’ Category
Barnes & Noble Reports Fiscal 2011 Q1 Results no comments
Barnes & Noble today reported sales and earnings for its fiscal 2011 first quarter which ended July 31, 2010.
Total sales for Q1 ($1.4 billion) were up 21 percent compared to last year. B&N’s embracing of digital reading has really been paying off – Barnes & Noble.com sales ($145 million) surged 42 percent over the prior year, although the online sales still only make up a little more than 10 percent of B&N’s total sales at this point. Still, just as ebook sales in general make up only a small percentage of current overall book sales, with growth rates like that ebooks (and B&N’s digital sales) are starting to add up to much more than just a hill of beans pretty quickly. Well, actually, maybe the bean counters like to see hills of beans.
“The company made significant strides executing its digital strategy during the first quarter, and all our key metrics on the digital business are well ahead of plan,” said William Lynch, chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble, Inc. “The company launched NOOK Wi-Fi, the most full-featured, low-cost dedicated eBook Reader on the market, the launch of NOOKstudy™, an innovative study platform that enables easy eTextbook and digital content management for college students, and the introduction of NOOK for Android™, free software that brings our eReading experience to millions using Android smartphones and the first of our eReading apps to feature Barnes & Noble’s new NOOK-centric branding. In addition, we are increasing the competitive advantage provided by our bookstores through the launch of full-service NOOK Boutiques, where customers can experience NOOK and speak with knowledgeable booksellers who provide device demonstrations and ongoing product support. Our digital strategy has clearly resonated with our customers as our Members – our best customers – with NOOK devices have increased their spending by approximately 20%. NOOK has also greatly expanded the Barnes & Noble customer base, with 25% of all NOOK customers new to BN.com.”
Meanwhile, in-store sales ($1 billion) were down two percent (.9 percent for comparable stores). The B&N College Bookstores did better than expected and saw a comparable store sales ($226 million) increase of 2.9 percent.
Unfortunately, unless my math is off, it looks as though B&N’s digital sales success is not making up for the decrease in store sales, at least during the time period in question.
Barnes & Noble also announced today that Jamie Lannone has been named President of Barnes & Noble Digital Products and John Foley has joined the company as President of Barnes & Noble eCommerce.
Lannone joined the company a year ago and has been serving as Executive Vice President. Foley is coming from IAC, where he has been for 13 years – most recently serving as the CEO of The Pronto Network. Foley is the founder of both Pronto.com and Proust.com.
In his new role, Iannone will be responsible for all NOOK™ eReading devices, software, accessories and retail integration and experiences; eBooks and digital content; and third-party partnerships. Foley will manage the BN.com online retail business including books, children’s books, toys and games, music, movies, home and gift items, electronics and marketplace, as well as merchandising, online and search marketing. The two seasoned executives will report to William Lynch, CEO of Barnes & Noble, Inc. supported by leadership teams and talented employees.
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Barnes & Noble Updates eReading Apps no comments
Barnes & Noble announced today that it is updating its ereading apps for the iPhone, iPad and PC. The B&N apps are also getting a name upgrade, and will henceforth be known as NOOK for iPad, NOOK for PC, etc.
The new NOOK for iPhone app seems to be getting the most new features and now has many new customization options. These include much of what was included in B&N’s iPad app – lots of font and background colors to choose from and other features to let you personalize your reading.
NOOK for iPad adds book rating, sorting ebooks by favorites and some unspecified performance enhancements . There is also now a user guide and tutorial. Apparently all the NOOK for PC app gets is the new name.
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NOOK Accessory Sale no comments
Barnes & Noble is having a 30 percent off sale on some of their NOOK covers and frames. In all there appear to be 10 different covers to choose from. No idea how long this will last.
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Barnes & Noble Expanding Campus Bookstore Textbook Rental Program no comments
Barnes & Noble says that its campus bookstore textbook rental trial held in January was very successful. B&N will be rolling out its rental program to hundreds of colleges and universities this fall.
From the press release:
Barnes & Noble piloted its groundbreaking textbook rental program in January, becoming the first major retailer to offer a multi-channel textbook rental program providing students the option of renting in the campus bookstore’s physical or online store. The response to the pilot program exceeded all expectations, as thousands of students eagerly embraced the textbook rental service. In fact, more than 90% of the participating students surveyed said they liked the program and would rent from their Barnes & Noble campus bookstore again.
Along with delivering savings of more than 50% over the cost of purchasing a new, printed textbook, Barnes & Noble’s rental program contains the features higher education students want most, including:
- The convenience of renting their books either in the campus bookstore or from the bookstore’s Web site, eliminating the need to pay shipping costs or wait for their books to arrive in the mail
- The choice to return their rental textbooks to the campus bookstore or via mail using free return shipping
- The flexibility to use a wide variety of rental fee payment options, including financial aid and campus debit cards, as well as cash and credit cards
- The ability to highlight and take notes in their rented books
- The freedom to keep their books for up to ten days after the last day of finals
- The comfort of getting automated, reminder emails alerting them that the rental period is ending and to return their books to the bookstore
Following the tremendous success of its pilot program, Barnes & Noble moved swiftly to make the rental program available to every school where it manages the on-campus bookstore. Hundreds of schools chose to offer textbook rentals at Barnes & Noble for the fall term – more than double the company’s initial projections – with hundreds more expected to add the service for the winter term.
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Barnes & Noble May Be Up for Sale no comments
Pssst! Wanna buy a bookstore chain? The NYT is reporting that the board of directors of Barnes & Noble is contemplating selling the company. Possibly to an investor group led by Leonard Riggio, chairman and founder and largest stockholder. Apparently this is because the board feels that the stock is “significantly undervalued.”
Should owners of NOOK ereaders be worried? I think not; digital reading is the future and B&N is on that train for the long haul. The introduction of the NOOK ereader and Barnes & Noble’s digital reading initiatives have made the company much stronger and vastly improved its chances of survival. This is not Borders.
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Barnes & Noble Adds Rentals to Its Textbook Offerings; NOOKstudy Sweepstakes no comments
Barnes & Noble announced today that in addition to offering higher education students digital textbooks and new and used paper texts, it will also begin renting textbooks. The new textbook rental service will be available through the Barnes & Noble Website.
B&N’s previously announced NOOKstudy program is also available from today. To celebrate B&N is having a sweepstakes – the Barnes & Noble College Giveaway Sweepstakes – which will give a $5,000 cash prize to one winner. Students who download NOOKstudy through October 29, 2010 will be automatically entered in the contest. See the NOOKstudy page for more details and non-purchase route of entry.
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Barnes and Noble More in Store Program for August no comments
Today Barnes & Noble announced its More in Store program offers for the month of August. To access the goodies you need to take your NOOK into a B&N store and tap the “shop” button. Besides the free content listed below, ebook discounts and freebies from the cafe are also offered. From the press release:
August 1
There’s No Such Thing As An Ordinary Day: A Q&A with the author of One Day, David Nicholls
One Day is a fascinating, explosive look at relationships and the way everything can change over the course of a single day. In this exclusive interview for NOOK owners, Nicholls discusses inspiration, romance vs. cynicism and the surreal process of watching a bestselling book become a screenplay.
Dan Ariely’s The Magic of Procrastination
Pop science favorite Dan Ariely is a must-read for anyone interested in human behavior. In his trademark energetic style, Ariely tackles a subject near and dear to the hearts of back-to-schoolers everywhere: the fine art of procrastination.
– August 8
A Quarter-Century with Peter and Rina by Faye Kellerman
With more than 20 million books in print, Faye Kellerman has been delighting readers with her husband and wife mystery-solving team for decades. Now, in this exclusive essay for NOOK owners, Kellerman talks about the joys and occasional woes of 25 years with her favorite couple.
Reading Teen Romance by Eloisa James
Teen love has come a long way since Romeo stood under Juliet’s balcony. B&N reviewer and romance author Eloisa James rounds up a few of the best new releases that will delight teen girls and mothers alike.
– August 15
Kelley Armstrong’s Battening the Hatches
Only for NOOK owners, Armstrong, author of Waking the Witch, Bitten and Stolen, writes an all-original Otherworld story taking place right before Waking the Witch.
Tea Party Fashion: Ruling the Fall Runways by Erin McHugh
Political fashion is on the rise says Erin McHugh, a Barnes & Noble bookseller in Manhattan. In this exclusive essay, McHugh writes about a little-covered area of the political landscape.
– August 22
Telling Stories by Joyce Maynard
Journalist and novelist Joyce Maynard offers Barnes & Noble readers insight into the inspiration for her newest novel: her inappropriate, outspoken and absolutely irresistible mother.
The Right Book for the Beginning Reader by Patricia Reilly Giff
Bestselling children’s book author Patricia Reilly Giff writes, from her own experience, about what makes the best kind of book for children who are just starting to read on their own.
– August 29
Anything is Possible: A Chat with Kresley Cole
The settings for Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark series run the gamut from New Orleans to the Scottish Highlands. In this exclusive essay for Barnes & Noble, Cole reveals how she chooses the settings and why escapism isn’t necessarily a bad thing.
Allowance Negotiation by Jean Chatzky
Teaching children about money is important, but not always easy. Just for NOOK owners, money coach Jean Chatzky shares tips on how to talk to your kids about finances.
– eBook Bestsellers and eBook New Releases Lists
As always, NOOK readers can access Barnes & Noble eBook Bestseller and eBook New Releases lists. The lists are available as a part of the "shop" feature on NOOK and offer book overviews, free sample chapters and customer ratings to help readers with buying decisions.
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Barnes & Noble Expanding NOOK Presence in Stores no comments
Barnes & Noble announced today that it is 
expanding the in-store NOOK (B&N has decided to improve its ereader by capitalizing all of the letters in the name now – reminds me of this) displays to full-service NOOK Boutiques. This is how you celebrate the one-year anniversary of the NOOK ereader if you are B&N.
The NOOK Boutiques will be about 1,000 square feet and feature demonstration tables and multiple working NOOK demos. There will also be flat panel displays featuring NOOK demo videos and a wide range of NOOK accessories for sale.
This does make more sense than Indigo’s recently announced plans to fill less-full bookshelves with trinkets – especially as B&N says that the majority of NOOK ereaders have been sold from stores rather than online.
B&N also says that Barnes & Noble Members who have bought a NOOK have been spending around 20 percent more after their ereader purchase. Additionally, the NOOK has expanded B&N’s customer base: 25 percent of NOOK users are said to be new to BN.com.
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Barnes & Noble Releases Android App; Fictionwise App Updated for iPad no comments
Barnes & Noble has finally released its ereading application for Android. The new app will work with devices running Android OS 1.6 or higher.
Some of the other features included:
- Eight font types in five sizes
- Landscape or portrait screen orientation; orientation can be locked
- Animated or sliding page turns
- Library can be sorted by author, title or recent reading; Library is capable of showing rich details of selected book such as synopsis and more books by the author
- Syncs with your online Barnes & Noble library; syncs with some of your other devices running the B&N eReader software, such as PC and iPad – B&N says that syncing with other devices will be added soon
You can download the new Android app from Barnes & Noble.
In other reading app news, Fictionwise has announced that its eReader eBook reading application is now available for iPhone, iPod touch and, with the update released yesterday, the iPad.
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Barnes & Noble Featuring Weekly Series of Free Classic Books 2 comments
Barnes & Noble today announced its Barnes & Noble Classics promotion in which it proposes to offer you a choice of ten classic ebooks every week which you can download for free.
OK, so what’s the big deal here? The B&N ebook section is already full of free or very cheap public domain titles, and certainly you can download these titles for free from places like Project Gutenberg (see my eBook Sources page).
At any rate, each week Barnes & Noble will be featuring a different collection of ten similarly themed free classic ebooks which you can enjoy on your nook or other B&N compatible ereader, or on one of the B&N reading apps – which will soon include a version for Android.
