Getting your player ready...
NEW YORK —Bookseller Barnes & Noble says it has bought back full ownership of its Nook e-reader business, which it plans to split into a separate company.
Barnes & Noble said Tuesday it bought Pearson Inc.’s stake in Nook for about $27.7 million in cash and stock.
The deal closed Monday, and Barnes & Noble said it now owns Nook Media outright.
Pearson is a publisher of educational books. Barnes & Noble paid Pearson $13.8 million in cash and about 603,000 shares of its own stock, which closed at $23.12 on Monday.
Barnes & Noble, the largest U.S. traditional bookseller, is struggling against tough competition from online retailers such as Amazon and discount stores such as Walmart.
