Barnes & Noble won't stock Amazon titles

Barnes & Noble says it

won't stock Amazon titles

Barnes & Noble is attempting to irk its publishing rival Amazon.com Inc. by not stocking Amazon-published titles in its stores.

The largest U.S. traditional bookseller has lost customers to cheaper online rivals such as Amazon.com and discount stores. To fight back, it has invested heavily in an e-bookstore and Nook e-book readers, which compete with Amazon's Kindle e-readers.

Amazon, meanwhile, has been steadily expanding its publishing operations, signing exclusive deals with authors. Publishers and booksellers have been worried about Amazon's dual roles as client and competitor. Some bookstores have expressed strong reservations about selling books released by Amazon.

Jaime Carey, Barnes & Noble chief merchandising officer, said Amazon's exclusive deals with publishers, agents and the authors they represent have hindered Barnes & Noble's ability to offer some e-books to its customers.

"It's clear to us that Amazon has proved they would not be a good publishing partner to Barnes & Noble as they continue to pull content off the market for their own self-interest," Carey said in an email statement. Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Seattle-based online retailer on Tuesday reported fourth-quarter revenue rose 35 percent to $17.4 billion, but that was nearly a billion short of what analysts had expected. The shortfall was due mainly to a slowdown in Amazon's media business, including content consumed on its Kindle and e-reader devices.