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I really don't believe we are in the age of, "we aren't able to do that." I think we're in the age of, "We're going to choose whatever path is financially feasible for our company, even if it means locking customers out of options that we could easily provide for them." Apple's entire business model is built on this reality, and they will continue on in this manner as long as they can shove out a product that is good enough for their customer base to put up with the limitations.
I think the real issue that folks like B&N are facing in the digital age is the startling realization that they have 800 big ol' stores nationwide, but the demand for their physical product is in the process of being replaced by digital media.
This situation then leads directly into the DRM issue, and anyone with half a brain is spending plenty of daily meeting time trying to figure out how they are going to dodge the reality of DRM's death.
It took the mp3 folks a while, but they figured it out.
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