Microsoft and Barnes & Noble are hosting a press conference this afternoon and rumors are circulating that the companies will release a tablet device for reading eBooks.

TechCrunch has more: “According to folks with knowledge of the situation, they’re somewhat right but mostly wrong. We’re being told that a tablet/e-reader built in conjunction with Barnes & Noble is on tap and that it will be entertainment driven.”

In April, the two companies announced that they had formed a strategic partnership and created a new Barnes & Noble subsidiary focused on digital content called “Newco”. At that time, Microsoft said that it would invest $300 million and Barnes & Noble released a Nook eReader app for the Microsoft’s Windows 8 platform.