[Eyenigma]

With Barnes and Noble trying to offload themselves to any sucker out there, does anyone else agree that stores like Barnes and Noble, and Borders will go the way of Blockbuster Video? Brick and mortar book stores are a dying breed - their days are numbered. They'll be eclipsed by Amazon, the iPad (and eBook format) and of course. Wal*Mart :-(

I'm not a huge book reader, so I can't say I'll be too disappointed. But it's absolutely amazing to wrap your head around. The last 5 years I think will be remembered (among other reasons) for the colossal decimation of retail stores. The vacated commercial buildings that these places once stood will NEVER return to former capacity. Convergence and online consumerism have all but made large retail stores a thing of the past.

Borders is next to die on the vine, and their recent stock price and quarterly reports indicate full well that they're on life support. Barnes and Noble were smart to salvage whatever they could.

[Captain Obvious]

Originally Posted by Eyenigma 

With Barnes and Noble trying to offload themselves to any sucker out there, does anyone else agree that stores like Barnes and Noble, and Borders will go the way of Blockbuster Video? Brick and mortar book stores are a dying breed - their days are numbered.

No
Will they have the same number of chains, of course not. They will not however disappear completely. First of all because of people's hunger for instant gratification that cannot be appeased unless they have something tangible in their hands. Secondly, because not all the world wants an iPad or Kindle. Electronic publications are growing market but there is a definite cross section of the consumer market that will not want one. And a substantial portion of those people will still want to shop at a B&M bookstore.
Independent bookstores on the other hand are screwed because they can't move or purchase inventory as cheaply as the big chains.

Blockbuster folded not because iTunes or Amazon replaced them but because Redbox and nexflix undercut their price points.

The last 5 years I think will be remembered (among other reasons) for the colossal decimation of retail stores

you sound like a giant computer nerd.

[Salty]

The thing is most of the major enthusiasts are probably looking at these devices and saying, hmm you know maybe I would love to carry around all my books on something small like a Kindle or a Nook, or an iPad. The same way that tons of teenagers said, screw burning CDs all the time, or worse yet having the CDs I bought get scratched, I want all of these things on that iPod my friend has!

The music store biz was destroyed by piracy and iTunes, along with Walmart and Target, most people forget this but digital cameras destroyed the film and film processing industries, the movie industry is doing surprisingly well all things considered, but Blockbuster and other rental places were propped up by a subsection of the population that watched a LOT of new movies, now all those people who loved movies have found better things to do, and the few people left who rent movies aren't enough to prop up the industry.

I imagine the address book industry has probably also suffered.

[BadKosh]

There will always be a market for antique and rare books. I look for mechanical engineering and locomotive technology books from the 1920's thru the 1940's and those books will just never be on Kindle or the like. Same for early aviation technology books.

[starman]

Once all these brick and mortar stores go away, people will have nowhere to go which leads to the need for more brick and mortar stores. Can't wait for that.

[OldManMac]

The facts are that the vast majority of purchasing is still done in brick and mortar stores. There isn't going to be a "death of retail stores."

[Laminar]

Originally Posted by Salty 

but Blockbuster and other rental places were propped up by a subsection of the population that watched a LOT of new movies, now all those people who loved movies have found better things to do

What?

[The Final Dakar]

If you were to randomly ask me what I think of Barnes & Noble, I'd probably reply, "I love it." If you were to follow up with, "When was the last time you visited one." I'd struggle to reply. I enjoy perusing B&N, but I just purchase anything I want off amazon when it occurs to me. It's easier, cheaper, and quicker. What can brick and mortar do to compete with that?

Originally Posted by starman 

Once all these brick and mortar stores go away, people will have nowhere to go which leads to the need for more brick and mortar stores. Can't wait for that.

Feels like that'll be what happens. Personally, brick and mortar only serves two purposes right now: Ability to see products in person and immediacy. Only one of those will actually get them sales from me. The internet has selection and usually competitive pricing (In larger population areas selection may be more competitive, but out here in Bumble****, PA, good luck with that).

Originally Posted by OldManMac 

The facts are that the vast majority of purchasing is still done in brick and mortar stores. There isn't going to be a "death of retail stores."

I would be curious about the demographics for it, though. I imagine certain types of products are being decimated by online competition.

[andi*pandi]

If I know what I want, amazon. If I want to browse, see what's new in the scifi section (aside from the top 10), read the first chapter, remember authors I'd forgotten about, a real bookstore is the better way. I can't stand browsing on amazon, too slow.

iPad is cool and all, but when you buy the books you can't share them with someone else's iPad, can you? My family frequently buys and trades books with each other.

There's also the beach/breakable factor.

Some independent bookstores survive by expanding, becoming card and giftshops too. I hope the Brookline Booksmith never goes out of business. Then again, like Dakar, I can't remember the last time I set foot in there. I did set foot in a Barnes and Noble last weekend for a last minute birthday present. First time in over a year I think.

[Shaddim]

It's a sad, sad thing, but I can see book stores dying in the next 5 years. Although I do shop B&N and Borders on a regular basis, maybe every couple weeks, I only buy ~10% of my books through them. Most of the time I just sit at home and browse all the titles of interest and get everything at once. It's even better with Amazon Prime because most things arrive within 24 hours. Also, I've never enjoyed special ordering, paying a high premium, and then having to wait for 1-2 weeks for something to arrive.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

It's a sad, sad thing, but I can see book stores dying in the next 5 years. Although I do shop B&N and Borders on a regular basis, maybe every couple weeks, I only buy ~10% of my books through them. Most of the time I just sit at home and browse all the titles of interest and get everything at once. It's even better with Amazon Prime because most things arrive within 24 hours. Also, I've never enjoyed special ordering, paying a high premium, and then having to wait for 1-2 weeks for something to arrive.

More and more folks are buying books at resale places like HalfPriceBooks or even thrift stores. The turnover at the local used book places is tremendous. I see this as the next big thing. Especially for older books, since so many of the newer books are complete crap anyway (content or otherwise), and don't hold up to repeated readings.

[The Final Dakar]

Originally Posted by finboy 

Especially for older books, since so many of the newer books are complete crap anyway (content or otherwise), and don't hold up to repeated readings.

Everything was better in the old days! *waggles cane menacingly*

[imitchellg5]

Originally Posted by finboy 

Especially for older books, since so many of the newer books are complete crap anyway (content or otherwise), and don't hold up to repeated readings.

What? Books being released today are just as good as those released in 1812, and they even have proper grammar. I know because I read a book about it.

[ShortcutToMoncton]

Originally Posted by imitchellg5 

I know because I read a book about it.

Haha, so it turned into a MacNN meme? Awesome stuff, I can't wait to join in.

[SpaceMonkey]

The entire book industry will be changed by new 3D books. Although I dislike the special glasses.

[Laminar]

Originally Posted by ShortcutToMoncton 

Haha, so it turned into a MacNN meme? Awesome stuff, I can't wait to join in.

It will be funny until Besson tries to use it, at which point it will become stupid and lame.

[Thorzdad]

Originally Posted by andi*pandi 

If I know what I want, amazon. If I want to browse, see what's new in the scifi section (aside from the top 10), read the first chapter, remember authors I'd forgotten about, a real bookstore is the better way. I can't stand browsing on amazon, too slow...

This.
Browsing online is a horrible, frustrating experience. Browsing an actual bookstore is almost guaranteed to expose you to something new you had not expected. It's very difficult to get that same experience on sites like Amazon.

[finboy]

Originally Posted by imitchellg5 

What? Books being released today are just as good as those released in 1812, and they even have proper grammar. I know because I read a book about it.

Whatever. The last dozen paperbacks I bought new fell apart, a couple half way through the book.

Bindings on books today just ain't what they were, even 20 years ago. Textbooks have held up OK, but that's changing - publishers have figured out that if they make trade paperbacks of everything, or cheapen the hardback bindings, the books won't hold up the secondary market.

As for content, wow. So much of the newer stuff that I see at Borders is complete crap, even from known authors. I don't read it all the way through, of course, but a lot of the celebrated writing out there doesn't bear reading through. Junk.

So, to the extent that ebooks allow us to sort through the crap easier, they'll be more and more popular. Of course, ebooks and self-publishing create another noise issue, because any moron can publish whenever they want to. The aid of electronic tools to search, scan and focus on what we like may not be able to overtake the plunge in the signal-to-noise ratio that is ebooks. So far the Internet is gaining with respect to noise, too, so I'm not too hopeful about the ebook phenomenon taking off on its own merit. It will likely continue to be a supplement to printed books or a way for a small number of people to participate in something they already did. It has the potential to do so much more.

[imitchellg5]

Originally Posted by finboy 

Whatever. The last dozen paperbacks I bought new fell apart, a couple half way through the book.

Bindings on books today just ain't what they were, even 20 years ago. Textbooks have held up OK, but that's changing - publishers have figured out that if they make trade paperbacks of everything, or cheapen the hardback bindings, the books won't hold up the secondary market.

As for content, wow. So much of the newer stuff that I see at Borders is complete crap, even from known authors. I don't read it all the way through, of course, but a lot of the celebrated writing out there doesn't bear reading through. Junk.

So, to the extent that ebooks allow us to sort through the crap easier, they'll be more and more popular. Of course, ebooks and self-publishing create another noise issue, because any moron can publish whenever they want to. The aid of electronic tools to search, scan and focus on what we like may not be able to overtake the plunge in the signal-to-noise ratio that is ebooks. So far the Internet is gaining with respect to noise, too, so I'm not too hopeful about the ebook phenomenon taking off on its own merit. It will likely continue to be a supplement to printed books or a way for a small number of people to participate in something they already did. It has the potential to do so much more.

I thought you were talking about quality of the content.

Paperback books are pretty crappy and cheap feeling, but most hard cover books I buy seem to be very nice quality and worth the extra price.