Barnes & Noble, Inc. Acquires Bertelsmann's Interest in BN.com

Posted on August 15, 2003

Barnes & Noble, Inc. announced that it has reached an agreement with DirectGroup Bertelsmann, the direct-to-customer division of German-based media company Bertelsmann AG, to acquire all of Bertelsmann's interest in Barnes & Noble.com ( www.bn.com ) for $164 million in a combination of cash and notes, equivalent to $2.80 per share. Barnes & Noble, Inc. operates 630 Barnes & Noble stores in 49 states. It also operates 245 B. Dalton Bookseller stores, primarily in regional shopping malls. It conducts its ecommerce business through Barnes & Noble.com.

"Selling our shares in Barnes & Noble.com is in line with DirectGroup's strategy, as communicated in September 2002, to exit all media ecommerce businesses and focus on our worldwide book and music clubs," said Ewald Walgenbach, chief executive officer of DirectGroup Bertelsmann. "We sincerely thank Barnes & Noble for a very successful partnership in building one of the top ecommerce sites in the United States."