[fjtorres]

[QUOTE=GreenMonkey;1689198]Despite claims (and wishes of some) the paper book business is far from dead.
/QUOTE]


The issue isn't whether the print book business is dying or not, but rather how profitable the big brick-and-mortar superstores can be in a fragmented retailing environment where over 25% of all books are sold online and another 15% are ebooks, plus another 10-15% are sold by department stores, pharmacies, supermarkets, etc; all venues with lower operating costs and lower sales prices than what the superstores can profitably match.
People are still buying pbooks (about 85% of book sales are still print) and with Borders gone, B&N will likely end up with over a third of the total US market. But the value of their share is declining; as the recent Penguin report made clear, the median price of books is declining along with the decline in total print book volume. Less books sold at lower prices isn't the best way to pay for the leases on those pricy superstores.
Print books aren't dying, but the regional superstore business model is.

If B&M pbook retailing is to be profitable in coming years the storefronts need to get smaller and they need an answer to the convenience and pricing of online (and ebooks) as well as the ubiquity of the alternate channels. Both.
That's a tough row to hoe.

Borders had no credible plan and they ended up in liquidation.
B&N has a credible plan but they are short of resources to carry it out and without a capital infusion risk running out of time to carry it out.