Microsoft has secured a deal with US book giant Barnes & Noble in an attempt to take on rivals Amazon and Apple in the electronic books market. The two companies are teaming up to create a subsidiary for Barnes & Noble's e-book and college textbook businesses, including its Nook tablet, with Microsoft paying $300 (£185m) for a minority stake.
The venture, which is yet to be named, should enable the world’s biggest software group to grab a bigger share of the rapidly growing market for electronic books, currently dominated by Amazon's popular Kindle tablet and ebook reader, as well as the Apple iPad.
The Nook, which is the Barnes & Noble competitor in the segment, will get... read more