Barnes Noble

It isn't the cozy Shop Around the Corner — the indie bookstore of "You've Got Mail" movie fame — but it is the multilevel behemoth on the corner of Westwood and Pico boulevards that shoppers have browsed since 1995. And, now that Barnes & Noble has confirmed the unprofitable store's closing at year-end, lovers of things literary are bemoaning the demise of yet another Westside book merchant. "We're terribly distressed. We're devastated," said Teri Geske of Cheviot Hills, who one recent evening was checking out J.R.R.

Barnes & Noble Inc.'s prospects against rivals Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. in the fast-growing digital reader business just got a big lift thanks to a $605-million investment from Microsoft Corp. For the nation's No. 1 bookstore chain, the infusion will help its Nook business better compete against the top-selling Kindle e-reader and iPad tablet computer and relieves some of the pressure on Barnes & Noble to turn a profit on the Nook. It's also a good deal for Microsoft, which is spending barely 1% of its $60-billion cash reserve to gain a bigger presence in the e-reader and tablet markets ahead of the widely anticipated launch of its Windows 8 operating software later this year.

Barnes & Noble Inc.'s prospects against rivals Amazon.com Inc. and Apple Inc. in the fast-growing digital reader business just got a big lift thanks to a $605-million investment from Microsoft Corp. For the nation's No. 1 bookstore chain, the infusion will help its Nook business better compete against the top-selling Kindle e-reader and iPad tablet computer and relieves some of the pressure on Barnes & Noble to turn a profit on the Nook. It's also a good deal for Microsoft, which is spending barely 1% of its $60-billion cash reserve to gain a bigger presence in the e-reader and tablet markets ahead of the widely anticipated launch of its Windows 8 operating software later this year.

Barnes & Noble Inc. shares rose sharply after Jana Partners, a hedge fund that has pushed for companies to sell off assets, disclosed a 12% stake in the largest U.S. bookstore chain. The New York-based retailer's shares jumped 18% to $13.41. Barnes & Noble is considering separating its growing Nook digital unit into a separate company so investors will give it the higher valuation of a technology business. In March the company hired a new chief financial officer, Michael Huseby, who helped spin off two units while at Cablevision Systems Corp.

Struggling Barnes & Noble Inc., in its latest attempt to draw shoppers into bricks-and-mortar stores, is adding 25 in-store boutiques that sell products from Penguin publishing house, a report said. These boutiques, which have already been tested in 10 Barnes & Noble stores, are stocked with books published by Penguin and other gift-type items such as mugs and totes, the Wall Street Journal reported. Each one occupies about 200 square feet. The test boutiques have proved successful thus far, and Barnes & Noble decided to expand the concept into more than two dozen other stores, said Patricia Bostelman, a vice president of marketing for the bookseller.

NEW YORK ? Book seller Barnes & Noble's third-quarter revenue rose, but its net income fell 25 despite higher revenue as it continued to invest in its online operations and Nook e-readers, the company said Tuesday. Barnes & Noble also said it was suspending its quarterly dividend, and it doesn't plan to forecast its fourth-quarter or full-year earnings due to the effect of last week's bankruptcy filing by Borders Group. The company said its quarterly net income rose to $60.6 million, or $1 per share, from $80.4 million, or $1.38 per share.

After months of bitter attacks, Los Angeles billionaire Ronald Burkle and Barnes & Noble Chairman Leonard Riggio are expected to face off Tuesday in the next chapter of a prolonged battle over the world's largest bookseller. On one side is Burkle, 57, who made his fortune in supermarket chains and has been rapidly accumulating Barnes & Noble stock since late last year, raising the prospect that he is seeking control of the company. On the defensive is Riggio, 69, who grew Barnes & Noble from a single store in 1971 to the 1,350-outlet behemoth it is today, one that critics have blamed for the demise of small, independent bookstores.

E-reader lovers, get ready to toss your clip-on light--Barnes & Noble has just announced a new version of its Nook Simple Touch Reader that has an adjustable glow light built right in, making it possible to read in the dark -- unobtrusively. This is excellent news for middle-of-the-night readers, partners of middle-of-the-night readers who can't sleep with the light on, and parents trapped in a dark hotel room with a sleeping baby at 7:45 p.m. The new Nook will hit stores in May and will cost $139 -- about $40 more than the original Nook.

Barnes & Noble Inc., the nation's largest bookseller, announced a 13% profit decline in its fiscal first quarter but forecast second-quarter results above Wall Street expectations because of the expected arrival of the sixth "Harry Potter" book in July. For the three months ended April 30, Barnes & Noble had net income of $9.9 million, or 13 cents a share, down from $11.4 million, or 16 cents, a year earlier.

Barnes & Noble Inc. said its first-quarter loss narrowed to $2.03 million, helped by better results at the video-game and Internet businesses in which it owns stakes. The net loss narrowed to 3 cents a share from $16.3 million, or 25 cents, a year earlier, when Barnes & Noble had a $14.9-million investment write-down. Sales rose 4.6% to $1.19 billion, the company said. Profit rose at Barnes & Noble's 60%-owned GameStop chain, and losses narrowed at the Barnes & Noble.com online store.

E-reader lovers, get ready to toss your clip-on light--Barnes & Noble has just announced a new version of its Nook Simple Touch Reader that has an adjustable glow light built right in, making it possible to read in the dark -- unobtrusively. This is excellent news for middle-of-the-night readers, partners of middle-of-the-night readers who can't sleep with the light on, and parents trapped in a dark hotel room with a sleeping baby at 7:45 p.m. The new Nook will hit stores in May and will cost $139 -- about $40 more than the original Nook.

Struggling Barnes & Noble Inc., in its latest attempt to draw shoppers into bricks-and-mortar stores, is adding 25 in-store boutiques that sell products from Penguin publishing house, a report said. These boutiques, which have already been tested in 10 Barnes & Noble stores, are stocked with books published by Penguin and other gift-type items such as mugs and totes, the Wall Street Journal reported. Each one occupies about 200 square feet. The test boutiques have proved successful thus far, and Barnes & Noble decided to expand the concept into more than two dozen other stores, said Patricia Bostelman, a vice president of marketing for the bookseller.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s strategy of offering deep discounts over the holiday season helped the world's largest retailer perk up its revenue, but profit for its fiscal fourth quarter was down compared with a year earlier. The chain had sales of $122.3 billion in the quarter that ended Jan. 31, up 5.8% from $115.6 billion the year before. But Wal-Mart's profit slipped 13% to $5.4 billion, or $1.50 a share, compared with $6.2 billion, or $1.70 a share, a year earlier. In same store sales, the chain reported a 1.5% year-over-year boost in the quarter — its second such increase after nine straight declines.

Words & Ideas Compiled by Liesl Bradner. SUNDAY Nancy Daley : The author "Fatty McPherson," will be joined by her son and actor-writer John Francis Daley for a reading. Barnes & Noble , 731 N. San Fernando Blvd., Burbank. 4 p.m. (818) 558-1383. Steve Pemberton: The Walgreens executive and author will be signing his book, "A Chance in the World. " Barnes & Noble, , 731 N. San Fernando Blvd., Burbank. 1 p.m. (818) 558-1383. Shorty Rossi: The tough-talking star of Animal Planet's hit show "Pit Boss" discusses and signs "Four Feet Tall and Rising: A Memoir.

Holiday Books: E-readers Book fans who are just now getting ready to take the e-reader plunge can go straight to the tablet: Three major book retailers each has its own full-color, multimedia touchscreen tablets that follow in the iPad's shiny footsteps while trying to put books before Angry Birds. The iPad has some e-reading advantages. Its large 9.7-inch screen is wide enough to let e-books open into a two-page layout, and you see pages flip at your fingertips, yet it does so much with its enormous variety of apps, easy streaming and 3G connectivity that it also comes with a pricetag that starts at $499.

Amazon.com's Kindle Fire has drawn a lot of media and consumer attention as the latest, and perhaps the first legitimate, contender to the iPad. But Barnes & Noble Inc. argues that Amazon is just following its lead. Nearly a year ago, the bookseller rolled out the Nook Color, a 7-inch device that it asserts is the second bestselling tablet behind Apple Inc.'s iPad. Now Barnes & Noble is trying to fend off Amazon with the $249 Nook Tablet, which looks the same as the $199 Nook Color but has a horsepower boost that makes it a more polished product worth considering for those who don't want to, or can't, spend $499 on an iPad.

Barnes & Noble Inc. said it will buy Babbage's Etc. for $189 million in a deal that would greatly expand the giant bookseller's offerings of computer software and video games. Privately held Babbage's is owned by Leonard Riggio, who is chairman and chief executive of New York-based Barnes & Noble. Barnes & Noble formed a special committee of independent directors to evaluate the feasibility and fairness of the deal, given Riggio's connection to both companies.