Borders® Reduces Price of Kobo and Aluratek eReaders to $129 and $99

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Aug. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Borders® today announced that its leading eReader devices, the Kobo™ eReader and Aluratek "Libre" eBook Pro, will be available beginning tomorrow, Sept. 1, at the new low price of $129.99 and $99.99, respectively. The price reduction of Borders' best-selling eReaders further emphasizes the company's commitment to delivering even more choice and value to customers.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20060208/BORDERSGRPLOGO )

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060208/BORDERSGRPLOGO )

The Aluratek device is available for purchase on Borders.com and will be available in Borders stores this week; the Kobo eReader is currently available both online and in-store.

"We're committed to making it as easy as possible for all Borders customers to enjoy eReading," said Mike Edwards, CEO of Borders. "As the demand for eReaders grows, we believe it is important to provide accessibility to a variety of devices. By reducing the price of our best-selling digital devices, we're enabling even more Borders customers to purchase eReaders at a great value."

Borders' eReader devices represent key components of the company's overall digital strategy, which includes a device agnostic philosophy and commitment to offer numerous brands of devices by the end of 2010.

"This is a significant inflection point in terms of market penetration of the Kobo and Aluratek eReaders," Edwards continued. "We envision this price reduction, enabling the purchase of these devices as a second eReader in a household, as a more affordable option – the list goes on. We're thrilled to bring even more value to Borders customers who are excited about great books – digital or otherwise."

In addition, Borders announced it will carry Velocity Micro's Android-based Cruz Reader R101 and Cruz Tablet T103, which are now available for preorder on Borders.com for $199.99 and $299.99, respectively.

With 7" displays, the Cruz touch-screen devices provide an enjoyable and engaging reading experience, play video and music, and browse the Web in full color.

The purchase of the Cruz Reader includes a docking station that turns the eReader into an interactive media hub and picture frame. The docking station is optional for the Tablet. An SD memory slot allows for nearly unlimited storage and hours of entertainment. Both Cruz devices come with the Borders eBookstore reader application powered by Kobo™ and give consumers access to more than 1.5 million titles, including thousands of free titles. The devices come preloaded with 100+ books and access to the Cruz Market with downloadable apps.

This offer follows the successful launch of the Borders branded eBook store, powered by global eReading service Kobo™, as well as the release of Borders' Blackberry® and Android™ eReading applications. Compatible devices include the iPad and iPhone, the BlackBerry® Curve™, the new BlackBerry® Tour™ 9630 and the Blackberry® Bold™, and all Android devices.

Borders is bringing the digital e-Reading experience to stores with the launch of its Area-e sections. These digital shops will showcase Borders' extensive selection of eReaders along with a number of accessories. Knowledgeable staff, who are trained on the devices, will guide customers through the eReader discovery experience, providing demonstrations and answering questions.

About "Powered by Kobo": Kobo, Inc.

"Powered by Kobo" is an eBook partner program from Kobo, a global eBook service backed by Indigo Books & Music, Borders Group, REDgroup Retail, and Cheung Kong Holdings.  The 'Powered by Kobo' program provides a flexible solution for hardware manufacturers and retailers worldwide to launch an eReader or eBook store. "Powered by Kobo" partners have access to Kobo's catalogue of more than two million titles and applications for smartphones, netbooks, laptops, tablets and dedicated eReaders.  Kobo's vision is to deliver any book on any device and is a strong voice in the eBook industry supporting open standards for eBooks and eReaders.  For more information, visit www.kobobooks.com.

About Borders Group, Inc.

Headquartered in Ann Arbor, Mich., through its subsidiaries, Borders Group, Inc. (NYSE: BGP) is a leading specialty retailer of books as well as other educational and entertainment items. The company employs approximately 19,500 throughout the U.S., primarily in its Borders® and Waldenbooks® stores.

Online shopping is offered through borders.com. Find author interviews and vibrant discussions of the products we and our customers are passionate about online at facebook.com/borders, twitter.com/borders and youtube.com/bordersmedia. For more information about the company, visit borders.com/media.

Safe Harbor Statement

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. One can identify these forward-looking statements by the use of words such as "expected," "planning," "possibility," "opportunity," "goal," "will," "may," "intend," "anticipates," "working toward" and other words of similar meaning. One can also identify them by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. These statements are likely to address matters such as the company's future financial condition and performance (including earnings per share, profitability, liquidity, cash flows, debt levels, market share growth and other sales information, inventory levels and capital expenditures), its cost reduction initiatives and plans for store closings, and the expansion of product categories, including eBook content and eReaders. These statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and plans to differ materially from those included in the company's forward-looking statements.

These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, consumer demand for the company's products, particularly during the holiday season, which is believed to be related to general economic and geopolitical conditions, competition and other factors; the availability of adequate capital--including vendor credit--to fund the company's operations and to carry out its strategic plans; adverse litigation results or other claims, the performance of the company's information technology systems, the anticipated impact of our Borders Rewards and Borders Rewards Plus programs; and, with respect to eBook content and eReaders, the availability to the company of anticipated content levels and a variety of competitive devices.

The company's periodic reports filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission contain more detailed discussions of these and other risk factors that could cause actual results and plans to differ materially from those included in the forward-looking statements, and those discussions are incorporated herein by reference. The company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Borders Group, Inc.