New York – Barnes & Noble is exploring spinning off its
Nook-based product business from the main company.
The company reported today it is now undertaking strategic
exploratory work to separate its Nook business.
“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,” said William Lynch, Barnes & Noble CEO.
The company believes the growth potential for the Nook line,
both domestically and internationally, is quite strong for the foreseeable
future.
The bookseller tempered this statement saying there is no
timetable for the move nor even guarantee the spinoff will take place.
The company also reported that sales of its Nook Color
products exceeded expectations for the holiday period.
Only the Nook Simple Touch saw sales lagged behind company
projections, the company reported.
Overall, sales of Nook products were 70 percent higher
during the 2011 holiday period compared with the same period last year.
Digital content also grew, increasing 113 percent. Digital
content is defined as digital books, digital newsstand publications and apps.
Barnes & Noble expects its fiscal 2012 digital content
sales to hit about $450 million.
