Barnes & Noble Survives Digital Transition with $204M Investment
Bookseller Barnes & Noble announced it has received a strategic investment of $204 million from Liberty Media. Liberty acquired about 12 million shares of the company at a price of $17 per share, which adds up to a 16.6 percent chunk of the largest bookstore chain in the world.
Based on a release, Liberty Media’s original intent was to acquire the company, but talks ceased following the investment. The sum, in turn, will be invested in Barnes & Noble’s digital reading initiatives – the only reason it hasn’t suffered the same fate as the bankrupt Borders.
“This investment provides Barnes & Noble with capital to grow its business on terms that are attractive for both parties and allows us to play a meaningful role in shaping their success to generate returns for our shareholders and theirs.”
The bookseller’s retail business hasn’t seen a lot of growth lately, though its digital books along with its Android-powered Nook eReader have picked up a lot of momentum. Barnes & Noble’s online unit grew 50 percent to $858.1 million in fiscal year 201, according to Bloomberg.
The capital will go into further developing the company’s digital offerings, but Standard & Poor’s analyst Michael Souers said it would be better if Liberty would have acquired it. That way Barnes & Noble could invest in R&D without as much pressure to turn in profit, according to him.
Many traditional booksellers have been forced to adapt to an ever-evolving industry and customer demand that now revolves around digital and on-the-go reading. Time has made four of its most popular titles, People, Time, Sports Illustrated and Fortune, available in a digital format, and now it’s starting to see this tactic paying off. The company said earlier this month they sold over 600,000 copies so far, which is part of the reason titles will become available to connected subscribes in the near future.
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