Lots of B&N news this week so let’s get down the three big points of interest:

1) Earnings Report: B&N recently released their third-quarter fiscal report. In a nutshell:

•  Total sales increased 5% as compared to the prior year, from $2.3 billion to $2.4 billion.
•  Barnes & Noble store (“Retail”) sales increased 2% from $1.46 billion to $1.49 billion.
• Comparable store sales increased 2.8%, on top of a 7.3% increase a year ago.
• Retail core comparable store sales, which exclude sales of devices, accessories and warranties, increased 4.2% over last year.

Interesting and important of course, but here’s what really matters: “Barnes & Noble College (“College”) sales declined 3% from $540 million to $525 million, due to a shift from selling new and used textbooks to lower priced textbook rentals. Comparable store sales were flat as compared to a year ago. College comparable store sales reflect the retail selling price of a new or used textbook when rented, rather than solely the rental fee received and amortized over the rental period.”

It looks like rental prices are affecting stores in the same ways in which they’ve changed the average order value online.

2) New Nook Tablet for $199
This news release is sure to catch some attention as the Nook has been getting great reviews from users across the Web and now the device is really starting to become much more of a tablet a la the iPad and less simply an eReader. Given the upgraded and expanded capabilities, storage, and power (and a very attractive price point), it will be interesting to see how Amazon and Apple respond. It looks like cheaper tablets with more power will be the wave of the future as rumors of an iPad 3 surface and swirl around the Internet.

3) No Amazon for You!
As reported earlier this month, B&N will be pulling all Amazon publishing titles from its shelves for related exclusivity concerns. As we move to a world where the platform is for both publishing and reading, we’re going to see more blurry boundaries, protective covers, and channel conflicts between the sellers, publishers, and merchants. And I wouldn’t rule out authors given the self-publishing capabilities of iBookstore an vanity presses.