Adobe and Barnes & Noble Join Forces to Standardize eBook Technology

Barnes & Noble adopts open EPUB eBook Format, PDF and Adobe Content Server

SAN JOSE, Calif. and NEW YORK — Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) and Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE:BKS), the world’s largest bookseller, announced further advancements for eBook distribution by joining forces to standardize the open EPUB and PDF eBook formats and collaborating on a content protection standard based on Adobe and Barnes & Noble technology. The collaboration makes Barnes & Noble the most portable and compatible eBookstore, and provides customers of nook, the new Barnes & Noble eBook reader and other compatible devices, as well as users of Barnes & Noble eReader software for iPhone, PCs, BlackBerry and other smartphones the ability to access digital content from thousands of content providers that is protected with Adobe technology. In addition, customers with devices that use the Adobe Reader Mobile software development kit (SDK) will soon be able to purchase and read content from BN.com, the world’s largest eBookstore.

“By standardizing on EPUB and collaborating with Adobe on a content protection standard based on Adobe technology, Barnes & Noble is delivering the richest range of content available, across a broader array of devices than anybody else,” said William J. Lynch, president of Barnes & Noble.com. “Consumers can feel confident that when they buy their digital content from BN.com, they can read it on more devices than any other bookstore. This collaboration with Adobe further delivers on our commitment to provide the digital content our customers want, anytime, anywhere and on whatever device they choose.”

Barnes & Noble is adopting Adobe® Content Server, a server software solution that copy protects eBooks downloaded to nook, mobile phone applications and other dedicated eBook reading devices that have integrated the Adobe Reader Mobile SDK. Additionally, Adobe is integrating Barnes & Noble’s eReader social content protection technology into Adobe Content Server, Adobe Reader Mobile SDK and, eventually, into Adobe Digital Editions.

“Adobe’s end-to-end eBook platform enables consumers to access an array of PDF and EPUB content on PCs, mobile and dedicated reading devices. Publishers benefit from the reduced cost and improved efficiencies that Adobe’s comprehensive eBook solution offers, while meeting the needs for eBook customers and protecting copyrights,” said Paul Weiskopf, senior vice president of corporate development at Adobe. “Thousands of online booksellers, publishers and libraries have adopted Adobe’s content protection technology, and we’re excited to be working with Barnes & Noble to expand eBook distribution.”

Barnes & Noble will support PDF and EPUB, a reflow-centric, XML-based open standard with broad support from the publishing industry and the Association of American Publishers. With this enhanced version of Adobe Content Server, publishers and booksellers will be able to protect EPUB and PDF eBooks through either social password or identity-based authentication options, allowing their readers access to interoperable eBook content across diverse platforms.

For more information on nook, please visit www.nook.com or Barnes & Noble’s newsroom.

Availability
Adobe Reader Mobile SDK with social content protection capabilities is expected to be available globally in early 2010. Adobe Digital Editions and Adobe Content Server with social content protection capabilities are expected to be available globally in late 2010. To learn more about Adobe’s eBook platform, visit www.adobe.com/products/contentserver.

About Adobe Systems Incorporated
Adobe revolutionizes how the world engages with ideas and information—anytime, anywhere and through any medium. For more information, visit www.adobe.com.

About Barnes & Noble, Inc.
Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE:BKS), a Fortune 500 company, is the world’s largest bookseller and the nation’s highest rated bookselling brand. The company’s operations comprise of retail bookselling, college bookstore management, online retailing and book publishing. As of Oct. 2009 the company operated 774 retail bookstores in regional shopping malls, major strip centers and freestanding locations in 50 states and 624 college bookstores serving nearly 4 million students and over 250,000 faculty on college and university campuses in 50 states. Barnes & Noble conducts its online business through its Web site Barnes & Noble.com, which offers direct home delivery of millions of books, music CDs and DVDs. The company sells eBooks and digital content from its Web site and from a wide range of platforms, including the iPhone, iPod touch and BlackBerry® SmartPhones. Through its Sterling Publishing subsidiary, the company publishes over 500 titles annually, under a variety of imprints including Sterling, Sterling Children’s Books and Barnes & Noble Classics.

General information on Barnes & Noble, Inc. can be obtained via the Internet by visiting the company’s corporate Web site: www.barnesandnobleinc.com.

Social Media Links:

* Follow B&N on Twitter:www.bn.com/twitter
* Become a fan of our Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/barnesandnoble
* Subscribe to our channel: www.youtube.com/user/BNStudio