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Barnes & Noble looking to sell Nook

January 5, 2012

Barnes & Noble may be selling, or at least splitting off, its Nook e-reader and tablet business, despite its recent success. It hit a record level of sales over the holiday season.

"We see substantial value in what we've built with our Nook business in only two years, and we believe it's the right time to investigate our options to unlock that value," William Lynch, Barnes & Noble's chief executive, said in a statement Thursday. "In Nook, we've established one of the world's best retail platforms for the sale of digital copyright content. We have a large and growing installed base of millions of satisfied customers buying digital content from us, and we have a Nook business that's growing rapidly year-over-year and should be approximately $1.5 billion in comparable sales this fiscal year."

Lynch expects the business to continue to grow rapidly for the foreseeable future.

The company also said it was "in discussions with strategic partners including publishers, retailers and technology companies in international markets that may lead to expansion of the Nook business abroad."

Apparently, shareholders didn't seem excited about the idea as shares fell about 20 percent Thursday after Lynch's announcement of a possible spin off.

Nothing is set in stone, however.

"There can be no assurance that the review of a potential separation of the Nook digital business will result in a separation," according to a statement from Barnes & Noble. "There is no timetable for the review, and the company does not intend to comment further regarding the review, unless and until a decision is made."

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