Posted on 01/07/2012 6:22:34 AM PST by Kaslin
Retail sales are up but profits are down as noted in Profit Warnings at Target, Kohl’s, J. C. Penney, American Eagle
However, shrinking profits are one thing, huge losses another.
On Thursday, Barnes & Noble increased its projected loss per share for the current fiscal year to between $1.10 and $1.40, from the 30 cents to 70 cents it reaffirmed one month ago.
I have commented before that brick-and-mortar book stores are in serious trouble. It's time to move Barnes & Noble to the top of the list.
The Wall Street Journal reports Barnes & Noble Seeks Next Chapter
The nation's largest bookstore chain warned Thursday it would lose twice as much money this fiscal year as it previously expected, and said it is weighing splitting off its growing Nook digital-book business from its aging bookstores.
Ironically, Barnes & Noble had been one of the first to recognize the potential of digital books. In 1998, it invested in NuvoMedia Inc., maker of the Rocket eBook reader, and the bookseller actively supported digital-book sales. But in 2003, it exited the still-nascent business, saying there wasn't any profit in it.
It wasn't until 2009 that Barnes & Noble re-entered the business, introducing its Nook e-reader. By then, Amazon had been selling its Kindle device for about two years, and was offering best sellers for $9.99, a fraction of what hardcover best sellers are priced at.
Apple introduced its iPad tablet in January 2010. Amazon responded with its competing Kindle Fire tablet this past September, and in November, Barnes & Noble introduced its Nook Tablet.
To promote the Nook, the retailer returned to national TV advertising in 2010, after a 14-year hiatus, buying spots on popular programs such as "American Idol."
The heavy Nook investment has squeezed Barnes & Noble's bottom line.
Barnes & Noble said in a statement on Thursday it was "in discussions with strategic partners including publishers, retailers and technology companies in international markets." It said that could lead to expanding the Nook business overseas.
What's the "Next Chapter"?
The Journal reports Barnes & Noble is also considering a plan to spin off its Nook business. If it does, can it make a profit selling books the old-fashioned way? If it doesn't, does if have the resources to compete against Amazon and Apple?
Either way, the "Next Chapter" for Barnes & Noble just might be bankruptcy court. It took me a second to catch the play on words in the WSJ article because the first thought I had was "Chapter 7" and a word was missing.
Bear in mind, even if that happens, it can take years to play out. GM was terminally ill for a decade before it succumbed to the inevitable.
I am a real bookworm, pack a book or two with me everywhere I go...people keep telling me I need a Kindle but I am like your husband, I want a real book.
I love Vince Flynn. I am so sad to hear of his prostate cancer. Prayers for him.
I was the same way, then last Christmas my husband gave me a kindle.......I have never looked back. LOVE my kindle and my new Nook Tablet.
I don't shop at Kohl's unless I get the 30% discount card in the mail and the $10 rebate at check out for each $50 spent. They are in all of the lower 48 states, so some store are likely not performing as expected..
I had no problem setting up wireless. As I stated, the ghosting and the questionable USB issue were the big killers for me. The microSD slot wasn’t an issue as I keep my books on my PC and only keep what I want to read on the reader. I seldom listen to music as it’s a distraction when reading so I don’t need a lot of storage for that. And the only photos I carry are a few recent ones of our granddaughter for showing to friends.
There’s nothing personal about an electronic book like there can be with a hardcover or paperback. No writing in the margins or other personal notations. My wife’s daughter offered to buy me a Kindle for Christmas, but I politely said, no thanks. My wife prefers the hardcover as well. Nothing against e-books, if people like them, I have no problem. But they’re not for me. I don’t understand all the techical stuff behind e-books. But I do know if it’s a machine of some sort, it can break down. Books made out of paper may deteriorate over time, but they rarely disappear because of some electronic malfunction.
Providing server space to Julian Assange/Wikileaks and selling a how-to-guide on pedophilia are two of the reasons I no longer do business with Amazon.
What you have describes my laptop.
Why do I need a dedicated device, when one device does it all?
I haven’t done business with Barnes & Noble online, but have had nothing but excellent service from the years I’ve ordered from Amazon.
You and me both. You can download Nook and Kindle to your PC for free and they have free thousands of free ebooks.
Silly question, but how do you find free wifi places and how do you connect?
Sure, it describes my laptop as well. But I can sit in my easy chair, lay in bed, sit at the kitchen table, outside in a chair or hammock, anywhere, a lot easier with the little, light, Kindle than I can with the laptop. For $99 or even less it’s a no brainer.
Would a 72 year old be able to use the Kindle easily...He was an electronics guy at Boeing, so he’s got some logic skills (I think)
99 bucks? Yow. Way out of my price range.
I’m 68. I don’t see why not. Even if his eyes aren’t what they used to be (like mine...), the fonts are easily adjustable for size, spacing, etc. And the contrast is good. Also, the Kindle Touch ($99) or Keyboard with WiFi ($139) work well in sunlight situations. I’ve read that the new Kindle Fire isn’t as easy on the eyes as these other models but don’t know from experience. As for the Nook Simple Touch, the viewing is comparable to the B/W models of the Kindle.
Connecting is easy. If you find yourself in an area with free WiFi, just click on your wireless network icon in your system tray (this is Windows-specific, the system tray is on the bottom-right of your screen). A list of available networks will come up. You’ll be looking for a name that fits the bill (i.e. StarbucksFreeWiFi or something along those lines) and it will show as unlocked, meaning no password is required. Newer versions of Windows (Vista and 7) will ask you what kind of network it is (you would choose “Public” in this case so the OS knows to tighten up the security settings). And that’s it, you’re on the internet.
Finding the free WiFi can be a bit trickier. Businesses usually advertise it; to my knowledge I’ve never been in a metropolitan area that offered such a service, so I don’t know if there are signs or anything like that.
I should also add, my Kindle Keyboard has two buttons, [Home] and [Menu] which provide complete access to all ramifications of the Kindle. [Home] gives access to your library, and [Menu] provides access to whatever features are available for whatever screen you’re on. There is a separate button on the keyboard that gives direct access to font adjustments as well.
The Touch model at ($99) has a ghost keyboard that’s available. Learning how to use the keyboard comes easily. A very easy device to learn and use.
We’ve been purchasing our books from BOMC2. As soon as a new book comes out it’s in mailbox in a week. it’s $9.95 a book with free shipping and handling and you only need to purchase one book per month. it’s easy for us.
The bookstore that I frequent wasn't constructed with bricks and mortar. So I guess it's not in serious trouble.
Check into refurbished eReaders...
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