The Chapter Case 8 opener mentioned Amazon's Campus initiative. It was developed to compete directly with university bookstores. This is a good corporate strategy for Amazon for many reasons—among them, it provides the company deeper access into the shopping behavior of college students, as well as of their media viewing purchases and habits. It also represents another large competitive threat to Barnes & Noble, which runs more than 700 campus bookstores. To make it beneficial for universities to partner with Amazon, Amazon pays the schools between 0.5 and 2.5 percent of all Amazon purchases made through the university website. Purdue University, one of the first
universities to sign on, reportedly has made $1 million from Amazon in the first two years of the program. Sixteen campuses had signed up by the end of 2016 with rapid continued growth expected. In August 2015 Barnes & Noble spun off its college bookstore unit into a separate company called Barnes & Noble Education (BNED on the NYSE). The firm stated the split allows each business to focus on its core. Barnes & Noble will focus on the consumer retail business, which has suffered from online shopping and digital books. The new firm will focus on the higher education market, putting it perhaps in a better position to seek acquisitions on its own.

1. In your small group, discuss any potential ethical issues with Amazon paying the university administration for direct access into the school’s course textbook system.
2. While Amazon as a firm continues to diversify its products, services, and markets under one corporate umbrella, why do firms such as Barnes & Noble choose to split into separate firms for greater focus on each piece of the business? Do these different strategies align with the core competencies of each? It may be helpful to review Exhibit 8.9.
3. If your team was asked to consult for Barnes & Noble Education, which corporate strategies would you recommend to the company’s senior leadership?

Exhibit 8.9: