Barnes & Noble’s Nook business continues to struggle in its competition with Amazon, with revenues in the segment declining more than 32 percent in the company’s most recent quarter, according to numbers released this morning.
The company said revenue in its Nook business, including Nook devices and e-books, was $109 million in the quarter ended Oct. 26, compared with more than $160 million a year ago. Sales of Nook tablets, e-readers and accessories took the biggest hit, falling more than 41 percent to $51 million for the quarter.
Barnes & Noble last year brought in Microsoft as an investor and at one point considered spinning off the Nook business, although that plan has since been canceled amid broader turmoil at the bookseller. The company has said it’s reconsidering the future of its Nook tablet business and focusing for now on standard e-readers.
Overall revenues at Barnes & Noble, including sales at the company’s physical stores, fell 8 percent to $1.7 billion in the quarter, and earnings before certain charges increased 13.7 percent to $76 million.
Barnes & Noble earlier this week announced the expanded availability of its Nook app for Microsoft’s Windows 8.1 operating system to more countries around the world. Microsoft invested $300 million for a 17.6 percent stake in the Nook business, but results from the partnership between the companies have been minimal.
