New Nook colour tablet arriving this year

Barnes & Noble has said it will release a new Nook colour tablet later this year, despite its troubled history in hardware.

Reporting the firm’s results for the fiscal third quarter, Barnes & Noble chief executive Michael Huseby said the company would produce its new device in partnership with a third-party manufacturer.

Huseby gave no further detail on the new device, or who Barnes & Noble might partner with, but said the company was “actively” engaged in talks.

The company last year said it was considering spinning out production of its Nook tablets, after heavy losses in the division. At the time, it said it would keep the production of its Nook Simple Touch and Glowlight ebook readers in-house, but “co-brand” the Nook HD and Nook HD+ tablets with a partner.

Trimming Nook’s losses

Barnes & Noble reported a $63.2 million net profit, up from a $3.7 million loss, on revenues of $2 billion, down 10% year on year.

That was helped by cost-cutting efforts in the Nook division – previously a drain on the company’s cash.

Losses in the division fell to $61.8 million for the quarter, from $190 million a year earlier. That was helped by a $52 million reduction in Nook expenses and a reduction in staff.

However, the lack of new devices also hurt digital sales, with device and accessory sales down 58% year on year to $100 million. Digital content sales fell for the fourth straight quarter to $57 million, down 27% year on year.