Riggio plans to dump the unprofitable Nook e-books and devices section

Feb 25, 2013 15:37 GMT  ·  By

Barnes & Noble chairman Leonard Riggio has offered to buy out the company's bookstores. When it comes to selling hard cover books, they are at the top of this industry chain in the US, with about 700 facilities.

While previous reports hinted that it might be sold to Liberty Media, which owns QVC and the STARZ channel, Riggio has stated that he is interested in buying the company.

The chairman for Barnes & Noble is intending to take over the profitable brick-and-mortar stores and the company website, leaving behind the Nook Media division, adds the New York Business Journal.

As reported previously, the Nook, selling e-books and reading devices, is set to report a loss this year.

The news comes after Borders has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy just a while ago, citing bad sales caused by the economic downturn.

According to the Epoch Times, reps at Amazon, once strictly focused on selling hard cover books, have stated that they now make a bigger profit off selling their books' electronic versions.

While cash-strapped readers seem to be turning towards e-books, Barnes & Noble is still doing better in old-fashioned bookstore selling.

Are you buying more e-books now than you were when the present economic crisis started? Leave your response in the comment section.