Barnes & Noble has closed down its Nook digital content store in the U.K., leaving its existing customers in the safe hands of Sainsbury’s Entertainment on Demand, or at least, it hopes they’ll be safe. The news was announced on the official Nook website in the country, but the wording will be of concern to anyone with a library of content sitting on a Nook tablet.
The deal with Sainsbury’s — the second largest supermarket chain in the U.K. — is being set up “to ensure you have continued access to the vast majority of your purchased Nook Books at no new cost to you.” The words ‘vast majority’ will worry Nook customers, because it indicates that some already purchased books will no longer be readable.
B&N’s not going to leave without taking care of its customers though, and digging through the FAQ reveals some good news. For any Nook books that aren’t included in the transfer deal, you’ll get a voucher for the total cost, redeemable through the Sainsbury’s Entertainment on Demand site. If the book isn’t available there at all, that won’t be much help, but at least there’s an effort on B&N’s part to keep people happy. We’re surprised it didn’t make this clear on the main page.
If you’ve been buying videos from Nook, then things aren’t so good, because they won’t be included in the transfer at all. According to the FAQ on the migration, videos will cease being available to watch online or to download after April 30. It’s suggested that anyone who wants a refund should send an email to Nook support. Worried your Nook will become completely useless after the transition, especially if you decide not to sign up with Sainsbury’s? If you’ve got a Nook tablet with a MicroSD card slot, then it’ll still happily accept new compatible files from it.
The U.K. site’s closure comes a little over six months after B&N shuttered its European branches, leaving only the U.S. site and apps in operation. The Nook site and associated apps will close for business in the U.K. on March 15, and details on how to migrate away from the Nook apps will be sent at the beginning of April.
