Barnes and Noble sees quarterly sales surge, losses fall to $41 million

Barnes & Noble has had a quarter worth remembering, bringing in $1.5 billion and reducing its losses to $41 million -- down from $57 million last year. Retail business was up, thanks to the closure of Borders branches and blockbuster sales of Fifty Shades of Grey, while College sales increased quarterly losses by $2 million to $14 million. While online sales fell 7.6 percent and the Nook business remained flat, the company saw digital content purchases skyrocket by 46 percent -- and the company couldn't produce enough GlowLight devices to satisfy demand. Wondering about the company's tie-up with Microsoft? There's still no news beyond that it hopes the new partnership will be up and running by the fall.