Barnes & Noble Sets Up German Division. Nook Could Be Going International
Barnes & Noble has witnessed great success with its Nook eReader but that success has been limited to the United States where the company has its base of operations. Now it looks like the company may be preparing to extend its reach, opening a Germany division known as Barnes & Noble Digital Media GmbH.
The new company was created two weeks ago, right after the company visited London in an attempt to get developers on board for the Nooks European arrival.
The new German wing of the company will be base in Berlin with Eugene DeFelice running the show as vice president and general council. Currently the Barnes & Noble Nook holds 3.5% of the eReader market, a push into new territories will certainly help the company expand that reach.
In order to launch a fully successful product in another country however the company needs developers to come on board and accoring to SlashGear developers came away from their meetings with the understanding that Barnes & Noble have not fully planned out their entry into overseas markets. For example developers were required to have U.S. bank accounts with all payments made in U.S. Dollars.
In the meantime Barnes & Noble has not confirmed their plans but company officials say they have no plans to launch physical stores in Europe.
In the meantime other reports have pointed to a partnership with book franchise Waterstones in the U.K. to launch the Nook, while various retailers in Germany could be tapped to help launch the company’s tablets.