[MsAstoria]

From nytimes article URL listed above, some interesting points:

More people are ordering books online or plucking them from the best-seller bin at Wal-Mart.

For Barnes & Noble, long the largest and most powerful bookstore chain in the country, the new competition has led to declining profits and store traffic.

For readers, e-books have meant a transformation not just of the reading experience, but of the book-buying tradition of strolling aisles, perusing covers and being able to hold books in their hands. Some worry that large bookstores will go the way of the record stores that shut down when the music business went digital.

William Lynch, the chief executive of Barnes and Noble, said in an interview on Friday that the chain was retooling its stores to build up traffic, add products like educational toys and games, and emphasize its own e-reader, the Nook.

But recently, Barnes & Noble has had to contend with Amazon.com, which has led on e-books and whose vast selection of print books is available online. The release of Apple’s iPad in April only increased interest in e-books.

At the expansive Barnes & Noble store in Manhattan’s Union Square, the changes sweeping the company and the industry are on full display. Shelves have been stripped bare to make room for toys and games, as a sign dangling from the ceiling cheerfully announces.

“I’m in favor of anything that brings traffic in the store,” said Ms. Reidy of Simon & Schuster. “If it’s toys or games that brings a family into the bookstore, then I say fine.”

The company is also taking significant steps to capture the digital market. In September, it will begin building 1,000-square-foot boutiques to showcase the Nook in all of its outlets.

So, what do you think?