With Nook Deal, a Hint of Microsoft Hardware

Microsoft does not make its own hardware products, except, of course, in the rare cases when it does, like the Xbox videogame console, the Zune music player and computer mice. In the PC and phone markets, though, Microsoft has been extraordinarily careful to say it wants to create only the software that powers those devices, leaving the hardware to outside partners.

But the company’s decision to invest in the Nook e-book business of the struggling retailer Barnes & Noble offers some tantalizing clues that Microsoft may be rethinking its position on hardware.

First, there is the Microsoft investment itself in the new Barnes & Noble e-book subsidiary: $300 million for a 17.6 percent stake, plus an additional $305 million in payments over five years. There is speculation that Barnes & Noble, as a result of this investment, will create new Nook devices that are based on Windows 8, a coming operating system designed for devices with touch-sensitive screens.   Full article

E-Books, Shmee-Books: Readers Return to the Stores

Facing economic gloom and competition from cheap e-readers, brick-and-mortar booksellers entered this holiday season with the humblest of expectations.

But the initial weeks of Christmas shopping, a boom time for the book business, have yielded surprisingly strong sales for many bookstores, which report that they have been lifted by an unusually vibrant selection; customers who seem undeterred by pricier titles; and new business from people who used to shop at Borders, the chain that went out of business this year.

Barnes & Noble, the nation’s largest bookstore chain, said that comparable store sales this Thanksgiving weekend increased 10.9 percent from that period last year. The American Booksellers Association, a trade group for independents, said last week that members saw a sales jump of 16 percent in the week including Thanksgiving, compared with the same period a year ago.

Full article

In E-Reader Battle, a Superhero Slugfest Among Booksellers

Jim Lee, co-publisher of DC Entertainment, showcases the graphic novel "Superman: Earth One" on the Kindle Fire.

The tablet wars have begun. Superheroes are the prize — or perhaps the victim.

Amazon, seeking to make its coming Kindle Fire tablet as appealing as possible, negotiated a deal with DC Comics for the exclusive digital rights to a hundred popular graphic novels. Among the series: Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, the Sandman and Watchmen.

Barnes & Noble, with a tablet of its own to nurture, did not like this one bit. Two weeks ago it removed all the copies of the physical volumes from its 1,300 stores, saying it would not carry any book if it were denied the right to sell the digital version.

Books-a-Million, the third-largest bookseller with 231 stores, followed suit last week, making the same argument.  Full article

OverDrive 3rd Quarter Results Show Spike in Ebook Use

OverDrive released 3rd quarter 2011  traffic and ciruclation statisics a few days ago. Through September 30, the 15,000 libraries in the OverDrive network showed nearly triple the number of eBook checkouts versus all of 2010, as well as more than 2 million new users. Below are details.

•eBook checkouts already up 200% versus all of 2010 to more than 12 million and on pace to exceed 16 million
•Nearly 2 million new users signed up with libraries in the OverDrive network (on pace to nearly double in 2011 vs. 2010)
•Readers browsing on their smartphones and tablets grew significantly, as mobile checkouts increased to 21 percent of overall checkouts
•Installs of the free OverDrive Media Console application for eBook and audiobook reading and listening have passed 9 million, including more than 2 million on smartphones and tablets such as iPhone®, iPad® and Android™   Full story

Publishing Gives Hints of Revival, Data Show

The publishing industry has expanded in the past three years as Americans increasingly turned to e-books and juvenile and adult fiction, according to a new survey of thousands of publishers, retailers and distributors that challenges the doom and gloom that tends to dominate discussions of the industry’s health.

BookStats, a comprehensive survey conducted by two major trade groups that was released early Tuesday, revealed that in 2010 publishers generated net revenue of $27.9 billion, a 5.6 percent increase over 2008. Publishers sold 2.57 billion books in all formats in 2010, a 4.1 percent increase since 2008.

The Association of American Publishers and the Book Industry Study Group collaborated on the report and collected data from 1,963 publishers, including the six largest trade publishers. The survey encompassed five major categories of books: trade, K-12 school, higher education, professional and scholarly.

“We’re seeing a resurgence, and we’re seeing it across all markets — trade, academic, professional,” said Tina Jordan, the vice president of the Association of American Publishers. “In each category we’re seeing growth. The printed word is alive and well whether it takes a paper delivery or digital delivery.”  Full story.

Using E-Books to Sell More Print Versions

How do you help brick-and-mortar stores sell books? Throw in an e-book. That is the idea of one publisher, Algonquin, which began a promotion in 300 Barnes & Noble stores this month that gives a discounted e-book to customers who buy an Algonquin trade paperback. The publisher has planned a similar effort for October, giving customers who buy a hardcover copy of “When She Woke,” by Hillary Jordan, the digital version of the book free.

“We spend a lot of time lately trying to figure out how to sell books in this new world order,” said Elisabeth Scharlatt, the publisher of Algonquin, part of Workman Publishing. “And particularly to help booksellers to sell hardcover books, which seems increasingly difficult. So this seemed like one way of calling attention to a book by giving an incentive to the customer.” Full story.

Nook Color Gets Apps, Flash and More. Officially a Tablet.

“The $250 Nook Color just became the best value in the tablet world, as Barnes & Noble adds apps, email and a Web browser capable of Flash video.  People who own the Nook Color can upgrade by downloading the firmware at nookcolor.com/update, or wait for it to be pushed to their Nook via Wi-Fi. Since the update brings the internal OS to Android 2.2 (Froyo), the browser will support Flash.

It’s important to note that the Nook Color is not a fully supported Android tablet, complete with Google’s Android App Market. You can only run apps that come from B&N store. But there are already 125 apps and games, among them popular favorites like Angry Birds, Pulse reader, Pandora, Uno, Epicurious and Drawing Pad — an iOS app that is only now making its move to Android.”  Story

Can libraries survive in a digital world?

Publishers stand accused of “nonsensical” policies on e-book lending to libraries. So, with nearly $1bn spent on e-books last year in the US alone, what does this mean for the institutions already at risk of closure?

When publishers “declared war on libraries” last October – according to Luton’s head of libraries – there was uproar.

The Publishers’ Association (PA) in the UK has agreed with the major publishing houses by either geographical location or the number of readers using an e-book at any one time.

And when HarperCollins became the first publisher to put its head above the parapet and change its conditions to the libraries, there was further anger.

It believes that e-books should be given a licence for 26 uses and then this must be renewed at further – though reduced – cost.

“We believe this change balances the value libraries get from our titles with the need to protect our authors and ensure a presence in public libraries,” read a HarperCollins statement.

The “26-use” model was arrived at because, HarperCollins says, of the average lifespan of a physical copy in a library.

Full BBC News story here.

Read Kindle books on Nook Color

Yep, you are reading this right. It’s actually quite easy now to get Kindle books on Nook color and have both eBook stores available to you on a single device. This is possible because Nook Color is more of an entry level Android tablet than a dedicated eReader. As it comes out of the box it just happens to start the Nook application by default and not let users run anything else.

However that can easily be fixed by rooting the device and enabling the Android Market. With Andoid market you can install all kinds of applications, including Kindle, Kobo reader. You would also be able to play Angry Birds and watch Youtube videos. Installing the Kindle application for Android will let you read Amazon Kindle books on your Nook Color device.

Full story continues here.

Times Will Rank E-Book Best Sellers

In an acknowledgment of the growing sales and influence of digital publishing, The New York Times said on Wednesday that it would publish e-book best-seller lists in fiction and nonfiction beginning early next year.

The lists will be compiled from weekly data from publishers, chain bookstores, independent booksellers and online retailers, among other sources.

Full story continues here.