[simplyparticular]

B&N bungled things from the very first step in 2009 - buying Fictionwise/eReader, and doing NOTHING except make it more and more difficult to get e-books.

They paid good money for a "social-DRM", but completely ignored the well-developed ebookstore, robust apps and an early-adopter client base, and let it rot on the vine while they built a brand-new store of their own - devices, apps, and selection. None of which ever lived up to the eco-system they let languish.

And they completely supported the BPH agency pricing, which killed off what little use the FW/eReader stores still had.

And then they waited YEARS to integrate those prior customers into their new system, bungled it badly for many, and then broke the one thing keeping some of those customers in their fold - side-loading.

The inconsistent device quality, poor customer service and failure to capitalize on their own walk-in traffic were just more of the same stuff they demonstrated with the Fictionwise debacle.

I haven't bothered to track it, but I suspect B&N was similar to Borders - both had incestuous relationships with the BPH - staff moved back and forth between the corporate office at Borders and BPH for years.