Barnes and Noble has been struggling to compete with Amazon for some time and it is a battle for survival. For those who have been following the ebook wars, it is clear Amazon is winning the battle for device adoption and ebook format. Amazon supposedly controls about 67% of the ebook market, depending on whose numbers you refer to.
Amazon has aggressively pursued the print-on-demand (POD) share of the print market through its purchase and development of CreateSpace. Lightning Source has been CreateSpace's primary competitor for the POD market.
Barnes and Noble recently entered the fray with a print division of its Nook Press. Competition in the marketplace is a good thing, particularly for indie and self-publishing authors.
A quick examination of the Nook Press print web site gives the answer about whether or not Barnes and Noble will be able to compete with industry giants LSI and CreateSpace. The future, based on price per copy alone, looks doubtful for Nook Press.
Using the online price calculator provided a quote of $5 per book, less tax and S&H, was provided for a black and white, paperback edition with white paper in 6x9 trim with a page count of 201-250 pages.
The same book, with the maximum of 250 pages, from CreateSpace would cost $3.85. I did not bother to calculate the price for the same book from LSI.
Cost alone prevented me from investigating further in the ease of use of Nook Press. Granted, hardback editions and hardback with dust jackets are available, and for some authors that may be a factor.
The only possible advantage to using Nook Press is the possibility the books could be carried in the brick and mortar Barnes and Noble retail stores. I was not able to determine if this possibility exists from navigating the website.
If anyone has any additional insight into this new division of Nook Press, please comment.
