Barnes & Noble saw a stock surge on the report that Microsoft wants to buy the Nook Media unit for $1 billion. The bookseller’s stock increased 24 percent to $22.08 at the close in New York for the largest one-day gain since April 30, 2012.
The plan sees Microsoft gaining preferred units in Nook Media, which also includes a college book business. Nook Media also intends to discontinue its Android-based tablet business by the end of its 2014 fiscal year to begin using applications on unnamed “third-party” devices, which would probably be Microsoft related.
Both Barnes & Noble and Microsoft declined to comment.
Source: Bloomberg.com
