Barnes & Noble releases Nook app for Windows 8, Windows RT

From CNET News.com: Microsoft's digital book pact with Barnes & Noble is already bearing fruit.

A little more than a month after the two companies officially formed a partnership geared toward digital reading, Nook apps for Windows 8 and Windows RT have arrived at the Windows Store. B&N CEO William promised last month that a Windows 8 app was "imminent," but it was not available at the time of the new operating system's launch last month.

As part of the two companies' pact, Microsoft agreed to invest $300 million for a 17.6 percent stake in a new Barnes & Noble subsidiary that would focus on B&N's Nook digital and college businesses. In exchange, Barnes & Noble agreed to load its Nook digital bookstore with Windows 8, the software giant's next-generation operating system that launched at the end of October.

The app, which allows Windows 8 and Windows RT devices users to read books, newspapers, comics, and magazines, was important enough to Microsoft that it brought in mobile guru Andy Lees to spearhead the joint effort. Lees' efforts were apparently appreciated, since he was recently promoted to head of corporate development and strategy.

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