The reason is simple, "hating Microsoft" is the favourite hobby of a lot of people on these forums.
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Microsoft Invests $300 Million in Nook to Take on Amazon and Apple in E-Book Market
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The reason is simple, "hating Microsoft" is the favourite hobby of a lot of people on these forums.
I don't know, I think a lot of people are reading this announcement wrong. MS has been in the "tabletesque"/reader devices game since the iPaq and Windows CE. Yeah, those products were different than what tablets and smart devices look like today, but there was a start there, not here.
So, to me, they are investing $300 million in a specific implementation of their Windows 8 concept, a focused and straight forward, maybe even "limited" implementation of their OS that allows for cheaper, stable devices.
If you want to say they are copying someone, they are copying Amazon's strategy of forking Android and making a coherent product. However, I don't think the fork of Windows 8 will be as drastic, might even be a normal edition of Windows 8 with some very strict theme or default settings.
So, to me, they are investing $300 million in a specific implementation of their Windows 8 concept, a focused and straight forward, maybe even "limited" implementation of their OS that allows for cheaper, stable devices.
If you want to say they are copying someone, they are copying Amazon's strategy of forking Android and making a coherent product. However, I don't think the fork of Windows 8 will be as drastic, might even be a normal edition of Windows 8 with some very strict theme or default settings.
iBooks is many things, but innovative isn't one of them. It's a poor, crippled imitation of Kindle.
Kindle lets me read my content on every device I own, desktop and mobile, in a dedicated app or a browser.
iBooks won't even let me read my books on my Macs, let alone a PC or Android.
I've bought some books on iBooks because I have an iTunes gift card and don't buy music, but once it's used up I can see any reason why I'd buy books at a higher price than Kindle with less flexibility.
I can't see any reason why Microsoft will be any more successful in this market than Apple. There are lots of Kindles out there, and they're cut off from this venture. And if they emulate Apple and don't make it multiplatform it will go nowhere.
I guess better late than never. 
Ballmer on Tablets: We're Coming Full Guns (July, 2010)
http://mashable.com/2010/07/30/ballmer-tablets-2/
Ballmer on Tablets: We're Coming Full Guns (July, 2010)
http://mashable.com/2010/07/30/ballmer-tablets-2/
They already do in WindowsRT, which is the ARM specific, Metro focused version of Windows 8. The next Nook tablet could easily use it instead of Android, and have a B&N eBook frontend right there on the homescreen.
keiths29 said:
MS is killing the Nokia brand? Last I heard, the Lumia line was making steady inroads into the smartphone market. It's on a slow, but steady incline.
Conflicting stories because I read some where that Apple was possibly thinking of buying B&N, let all the rumors run wild...
Good point that is usually not brought up, but unfortunately the list is inaccurate (I've since cleaned it up some) and incomplete. One of the most noteworthy acquisitions was purchasing KeyGrip from Macromedia in '98 and turning it into Final Cut Pro. This wouldn't appear on that list though because Apple didn't not acquire Macromedia just some of their IP.
Lethal
Wow. So much blind hatred, with very little logical thinking to back it up.
This actually could be a fantastic move on Microsoft's part. By making this deal they can ensure that, for example, the Nook reading software would come included with Win 8 tablets, with full access to the vast majority of ebooks being published. (Note: I'm of course not including the vast amount of self-published material on Amazon/Kindle, 99% of which is an utter waste of e-ink)
What was Microsoft's other option, pray tell? Amazon is a behemoth on its own, it'd be hard to tackle them from the ground up. Apple has a fairly weak part of the marketshare with the very crippled iBooks, poor availability of ebooks (especially internationally) and relations with publishers that are far from being the best. Microsoft building a digital bookstore on their own could have taken years and a whole lot money and effort. By doing this, Microsoft is directly using Barnes & Noble's long history of ties with the industry, publishing rights and pre-existing digital platform and ecosystem in order to burst into the ebook market. If they do include the Nook software on Win 8 tablets/phone (the same way they've started including Skype), this would drive up B&N's marketshare significantly. Not only is this a wise move financially speaking for both companies, it's also incredibly healthy for competition and in turn, for the customers.
This actually could be a fantastic move on Microsoft's part. By making this deal they can ensure that, for example, the Nook reading software would come included with Win 8 tablets, with full access to the vast majority of ebooks being published. (Note: I'm of course not including the vast amount of self-published material on Amazon/Kindle, 99% of which is an utter waste of e-ink)
What was Microsoft's other option, pray tell? Amazon is a behemoth on its own, it'd be hard to tackle them from the ground up. Apple has a fairly weak part of the marketshare with the very crippled iBooks, poor availability of ebooks (especially internationally) and relations with publishers that are far from being the best. Microsoft building a digital bookstore on their own could have taken years and a whole lot money and effort. By doing this, Microsoft is directly using Barnes & Noble's long history of ties with the industry, publishing rights and pre-existing digital platform and ecosystem in order to burst into the ebook market. If they do include the Nook software on Win 8 tablets/phone (the same way they've started including Skype), this would drive up B&N's marketshare significantly. Not only is this a wise move financially speaking for both companies, it's also incredibly healthy for competition and in turn, for the customers.
This is truly bizarre. Kindle uses a proprietary format with DRM. There is one app that can read it, and one app only. iBooks come in standard EPUB format. DRM depends on the seller; the ones that I have bought so far are DRM free. They get copied onto my Mac automatically; there is Calibre to read them and at least two apps on the Mac App Store that will read them. Calibre works on Windows and Linux as well. Worst case you rename the file from .epub to .zip, open with Stuffit Expander, and all the .html contents is in front of you.
ARE YOU SARCASM, SIR?
Okay, if you really don't know, a Nook is sort of like a Kindle Fire, but supposedly a bit better and smoother. I haven't used one myself, but those who have seem to prefer it over the other eBook focused tablets.
Yep, that stupid iPod touch is so crap compared to Classic iPod
Apple knowingly and intentionally discontinued updates for the the classic iPod coz they found a better solution. iPhone and iPod touch. If you think this had anything to do with the Zune in any way at all, you're only fooling yourself.
Same reason as IBM.
Enterprise sector. Thats where MS makes their money, and where the majority of their product and services are.
I own a Kindle and my wife owns a Nook. I think they are both great devices. In fact, I actually prefer the Nook, which has a better UI. I just wish that B&N would replace the dictionary they use for the Nook with the American OED.
I think this great news. With the release of Windows 8 on tablets, it looks like Apple will finally have some competition in the tablet arena, which is good news for consumers.
Great news for B&N. I have an iPad and a Nook, Kindle's didn't support ePub when they first came out, the iPad is great for everything else but it kinda sucks for reading books.
That will be as smart as having many operating system / file systems for the personal computer market.
Except for Apple's latest push to get real interactive books rather than pdf-like files on your mobile device.
This is the battle of the future for books, interactivity and more visual content in the digital space. This evolution could have been foreseen for years, but nobody in the publishing business did anything about it, the epub format hasn't evolved fast enough, and the main force in the branch (Amazon) hasn't pushed anything forward (in the tools department or the file format).
What is going to happen, to all those e-readers, when the iPhone generation gets to the right age and wants more than simple text books?
In the Kindle device family only the Fire might be able to run interactive books while all generation of iPads are capable of it.
Interactive iBooks (
I think you've got it! Books are evolving into something different. People aren't quite used to that yet.
It will be interesting to see what becomes of the iPad mini thing.
If they can make something pocketable, and with a high quality screen that could be used in full light, it would be pretty devastating to the competition (not that I think that that's such a great thing).