Who Will Buy Barnes & Noble?

Yesterday Barnes & Noble's board said that it is considering putting the company up for sale. Today the speculation is running high on who might make a good bidder. The New York Times thinks it will be an internal battle of shareholders. "A battle for Barnes & Noble may come down to two of its wealthiest shareholders, who happen to have clashed repeatedly over recent months: Leonard Riggio and Ronald W. Burkle. The most obvious bidder is Mr. Riggio, Barnes & Noble's founder and its largest shareholder with a roughly 30 percent stake. Mr. Riggio will probably seek backing from private equity to mount a bid, this person said, though he hasn't yet hired advisers." Blogger Mike Cane thinks Amazon should make an offer. He gave a list of 15 reasons that the online retailer should including: "Amazon would gain a huge book-related retail presence for the Kindle. "Amazon could swiftly put ePub to death in one shot and transition all Nook buyers to Kindle format - without requiring eBook re-purchasing. "Amazon would have the major presence in book buying and force the industry into the twenty-first century. "Amazon could install POD machines. Barnes & Noble could finally offer what Amazon always has: every book in print, in-store. POD machines would mean cutting back on inventory by forcing publishers to eBooks and POD. (Publishers would come to favor that: finally, a business with no returns.)" What do you think?

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Who Will Buy Barnes & Noble?

Dianna Dilworth

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Dianna Dilworth