Barnes & Noble is dropping the price of its Nook Glowlight e-reader to $99, from the previous $119, breaking the $100 barrier in an effort to boost its prospects against Amazon’s dominant Kindle lineup as the peak holiday shopping season approaches.
Amazon’s comparable e-reader, the base level Kindle Paperwhite, sells for $119.
Barnes & Noble also announced this morning that it will offer instant rebates on its Galaxy Tab 4 Nook to drop the price of the 7-inch tablet to $149.99 (down $50) and the 10-inch tablet to $249.99 (down $100) during a temporary promotion this Friday, Nov. 21 through Sunday, Nov. 23.
The pricing moves are part of an effort by Barnes & Noble to boost its unit volume in the face of tough competition and declining sales.
Revenue in the company’s Nook segment, including content, devices and accessories, was down more than 54 percent in the company’s most recent quarter, to $70 million. As part of that, device and accessories sales were down more than 78 percent, to $18 million for the quarter.
The tablet promotions are part of Barnes & Noble’s “Discovery Weekend” events, with book signings and other activities planned for this weekend in its retail stores.
