Entries tagged with “barnes and noble” from Tools of Change for Publishing
Tracking Amazon's Dominance in the Book Industry
Mac Slocum
October 17, 2008
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Morris Rosenthal says retail figures point to Amazon eclipsing Barnes & Nobles in U.S. book sales this year:
The book selling wars that began four decades ago with the rise of the mall chains, followed by the growing power of the Barnes & Noble, Borders and BAM superstore chains, has been won by Amazon. Amazon sales are on track for double-digit gains again this year, aided in part by high fuel prices discouraging trips to the regional superstores that have replaced so many local bookstores. Amazon's North American growth in media sales (books, music and movies) may exceed the incredible 23% gain they turned in last year. Amazon is on pace to sell more books in the US than the entire Barnes & Noble chain in 2008, even allowing for a higher music and video mix. If you add Amazon's international stores to the mix, they will easily sell more books than Barnes & Nobles plus Borders this year.
News Roundup: B&N Won't Buy Borders, Kindle Roadblocks and Sightings, Pirates Convince Game Developer to Drop DRM
Mac Slocum
August 15, 2008
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Report: No Borders Bid for Barnes & Noble
It looks like Barnes & Noble won't acquire Borders after all. The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) says B&N is changing course from earlier this year and will not submit a bid for Borders.
Kindle Projections, Roadblocks and Sightings
Theresa Poletti from MarketWatch comments on the relative absence of Kindle sightings, particularly in Silicon Valley:
The biggest problem is the fact that the Kindle is only available online, via the Amazon.com Website. For many consumer electronics products, potential buyers need to touch and feel the device, to pick it up and play with it, before making any kind of purchasing commitment ... (Continue reading)
Pirates Convince Game Developer to Drop DRM
"Why do people pirate my games?"
Game developer Cliff Harris recently posed this question on his blog and the onslaught of responses caught him (and his blog host) by surprise. Harris offers some interesting conclusions, but most notable is this passage on digital rights management (DRM):
People don't like DRM, we knew that, but the extent to which DRM is turning away people who have no other complaints is possibly misunderstood. If you wanted to change ONE thing to get more pirates to buy games, scrapping DRM is it. These gamers are the low hanging fruit of this whole debate.
Harris says his company will no longer use DRM on its games.
Report: No Borders Bid for Barnes & Noble
Mac Slocum
August 14, 2008
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It looks like Barnes & Noble won't acquire Borders after all. The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) says B&N is changing course from earlier this year and will not submit a bid for Borders.
News Roundup: Publishers Push to Meet Russert Book Demand, Seth Godin's Kindle Analysis, BN.com Redesign Nets Big Traffic
Mac Slocum
June 20, 2008
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Publishers Pushing to Meet Russert Book Demand
Random House and Hyperion Books are rushing to meet demand for Tim Russert's two books, Wisdom of Our Fathers and Big Russ & Me. From Newsday:
Carol Schneider, executive director of publicity at Random House, reports that the company is immediately printing 100,000 paperbacks of "Wisdom" that began shipping yesterday [6/16/08].
Likewise, Hyperion Books has gone back to press for another 100,000 copies of "Big Russ," according to Beth Gebhard, executive director of publicity. (Continue reading)
Seth Godin: Community and Interactivity Would Benefit Kindle
Seth Godin weighs in with random thoughts on the Kindle, including:
The Kindle does a fine job of being a book reader, and a horrible job of actually improving the act of reading a book.
Godin says the Kindle reading experience -- particularly with non-fiction titles -- would benefit from reader recommendations, Digg-style voting, and hyperlinks. (Continue reading)
BN.com Redesign Nets Significant Traffic Increase
Barnes and Noble is seeing positive results from its 2007 Web site overhaul. From Publishers Weekly:
... in 2007, the online arm of the retailer posted a 10.1% sales increase, helped by a strong fourth quarter, and the solid results continued into the first period of 2008: B&N.com posted a 7.2% sales increase, compared to an increase of 1.1% for the stores. (Continue reading)
BN.com Redesign Nets Significant Traffic Increase
Mac Slocum
June 17, 2008
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Barnes and Noble is seeing positive results from its 2007 Web site overhaul. From Publishers Weekly:
... in 2007, the online arm of the retailer posted a 10.1% sales increase, helped by a strong fourth quarter, and the solid results continued into the first period of 2008: B&N.com posted a 7.2% sales increase, compared to an increase of 1.1% for the stores.
BN.com CEO Marie Toulantis says shopping and community improvements, such as the "see inside" preview tool and new groups/clubs, aim to increase visitor engagement. Those improvements are working: PW says visits to BN.com jumped from 70 million in 2006 to 138 million in 2007.
Borders Goes Solo on New Web Site
Mac Slocum
May 27, 2008
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Borders has separated its e-commerce offerings from Amazon and opened its own Web site. From the New York Times:
The new Borders site offers plenty to like, such as the Flash video-based "magic shelf" on the main page that recreates the experience of browsing the tables of new books at the entrance to stores. The site also ties in with the Borders reward card program and the physical book search kiosks in most Borders outlets, and offers video of author book signings and book discussion groups.
The launch of Borders.com comes as the retailer tries to navigate through unsettled conditions. In March, the company hired outside firms to explore business alternatives, including a sale. More recently, Barnes & Noble said it is studying a possible Borders acquisition.
News Roundup: Apple vs. Kindle?, OLPC 2.0 as an E-Reader, B&N Studying Borders Acquisition
Mac Slocum
May 23, 2008
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Will Apple Challenge the Kindle?
Rex Hammock re-launches consideration of why Apple would give Amazon a run for ebook readers and content distribution:
... a slightly larger iPod Touch [view concept image] linked to eBooks distributed via the iTunes store would match and raise the game with Amazon. (Continue reading.)
Next Generation OLPC: E-Reader in Waiting?
[Nicholas] Negroponte didn't share many details about the XO-2's hardware, but the new system has two touch-sensitive displays. As you can see from the video and the pictures, the XO-2 will be much smaller than the original machine (half the size, according to the press release) and will have a foldable e-book form factor. “The next generation laptop should be a book,” Negroponte said. (Continue reading.)
B&N Considering Borders Acquisition
When Borders announced its exploration of "strategic alternatives" in March, speculation marked Barnes & Noble as a possible suitor. The Wall Street Journal says B&N is taking that speculation seriously -- it's assembled an advisory team to study an acquisition of its brick-and-mortar competitor. (Continue reading.)
B&N Considering Borders Acquisition
Mac Slocum
May 21, 2008
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When Borders announced its exploration of "strategic alternatives" in March, speculation marked Barnes & Noble as a possible suitor. The Wall Street Journal says B&N is taking that speculation seriously -- it's assembled an advisory team to study an acquisition of its brick-and-mortar competitor. From the WSJ:
That Barnes & Noble is contemplating a bid illustrates how competitive book retailing has become ... Not only have Amazon and other Web retailers taken a significant portion of the $15 billion consumer book business, but also book sales have shown little real growth in recent years.
BN.com Selling Digital Magazine Subscriptions and Back Issues
Mac Slocum
May 7, 2008
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Barnes & Noble is now selling print and digital magazine subscriptions through its Web site. According to a B&N press release, the service contains more than 1,000 magazine titles and 12,000 back issues. Digital editions are handled by Zinio, the company that also manages B&N's "See Inside" book preview tool. M2 Media Group is managing print subscription fulfillment.
Commenting on B&N's magazine move, MG Siegler from VentureBeat questions the utility of digital magazine subscriptions:
The real question here is if people will want to read magazines online? The market this would seem to cater to, people like myself, [who] already spend so much time in front of a computer screen during the day that spending an hour or so more to read a magazine might seem like too much. However, transferring a digital magazine copy to an e-book reader like the Kindle might make [sense], but seeing as Amazon.com, a chief BN.com competitor, makes the Kindle, that probably won’t happen.
(Via Shelf Awareness)
Independent Booksellers and Chains Face Big-Box Competitors
Mac Slocum
April 8, 2008
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Looks like the "enemy of my enemy is my friend" maxim is coming in to play with the increased attention big-box retailers are giving to books. Small indie booksellers and chain stores, such as Borders and B&N, are feeling the pinch from big-box store markdowns. From the Washington Post:
Costco, Target, Wal-Mart and Sam's Club aren't just moving in for the kill with big discounts on the latest Stephen King or John Grisham page-turners. They are also engaging the culturally connected, targeting readers who delight in cocktail or book-club conversation about the latest titles. About 34 percent of book buyers made purchases at such locations last year, according to the Simmons National Consumer Survey.
Roundup: New B&N Site Taps Digital Revenue, Magazine Goes High-End with Production
Mac Slocum
March 24, 2008
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B&N Opens Digital Revenue Streams with How-To Site
Barnes & Noble's just-launched how-to site, Quamut.com, offers edited guides on more than 1,000 topics (it's a diverse roster; everything from iPods to beagles). According to Publishers Weekly, Quamut's free online guides are supported by display advertising and the sale of downloadable PDFs ($2.95 each) and laminated charts ($5.95). Some charts will also be sold through B&N stores.
Magazine Courts High-End with Price and Production
As publishers look to cut costs and go digital, Monocle magazine is choosing a different route -- it's using high-end production and big prices to differentiate itself: "We’ve demonstrated that format (trim size, paper stock) is more important than ever in a digital age. At the same time we’ve challenged the subscription model and convinced readers to pay more for quality -- Monocle’s subscription is 50% higher than its cover price," says Monocle editor-in-chief/chairman Tyler Brule.
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