November 20, 1998 Petition PETITION TO BLOCK BARNES & NOBLE ACQUISITION OF INGRAM This petition will be sent to the Congress, Department of Justice, and the Federal Trade Commission to block Barnes & Noble�s proposed acquisition of the Ingram Book Company, the single largest supplier of books to this bookstore and bookstores like it across the country. This acquisition, should it be allowed to take place, is just one more example of the large scale corporate consolidation that has infiltrated every corner of our culture. As the desire intensifies to increase bottom line profits no matter what the other consequences, so does the concentration of power in the book industry. Consumers are left with an environment in which fewer and fewer people are deciding which books get published and, ultimately, which books Americans can read and buy. Barnes & Noble has already entered into an alliance with the $14 billion media giant, German-owned Bertelsmann AG. Now, with Barnes & Noble�s proposed acquisition of the billion dollar Ingram Book Company, there can be little doubt that the book industry is falling prey to the same anti-competitive ills that currently plague the computer software and other industries. This deal would make independent bookstores virtually dependent upon their largest competitor for their books. It�s as if Burger King and Wendy�s had to buy their French fries from McDonald�s. We need your help. As a loyal customer of our store, we ask that you sign the petition below to help us lobby the government to stop this proposed merger. We are not suggesting that you patronize or not patronize any particular bookstore. We simply ask that you exercise your right as a citizen, and tell the government how your feel. We sincerely thank you for your support. NAME ADDRESS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25   Topics: B&N/Ingram,