Barnes & Noble Not Making an Xbox Tablet for Microsoft

Despite numerous reports (including some published within the last hour) claiming otherwise, Barnes & Noble BKS has told Benzinga that it will not be a part of Microsoft's MSFT event today. Earlier this morning, media reports suggested that an Xbox-enhanced, Barnes & Noble-developed Nook was scheduled to be announced at Microsoft's upcoming event. While previous reports indicated that the Xbox maker would leverage the Xbox brand in promoting its first tablet, the Barnes & Noble rumor was a last-minute addition. And it was hard to argue against; with a multi-million-dollar deal already in place, the Windows maker has a strong relationship with the bookseller. Now that the Barnes & Noble rumor has been denied, media attention is turning to the possibility of an Xbox-branded device. On Friday, Trip Chowdhry, the Managing Director of Equity Research at Global Equities Research, dismissed the notion that Microsoft would tie the Xbox name to its tablet, referring the console brand as "yesterday's story." "Will that be a smart move to brand tablets with Xbox?" Chowdhry questioned. "I don't think this will be a smart move, but Microsoft has a history of making bad moves. If they do that, that would definitely be bad." Follow me @LouisBedigianBZ