It just goes to show that if you push back hard enough, the fight will eventually cease. And so Permira, the private equity company that twice tried to buy HMV, has finally dropped out of the running. And surprise, HMV's stock prices have fallen as a result, but Ottakar's fortunes rose 4% as the prospect of a merger gathered full steam.

Meanwhile, Waterstone's -- owned by HMV, which is trying to merge with Ottakar's -- is in a state of serious rejigging. Publishing News reports that the company is losing a number of staff across its 28 campus bookshops and head office. Six of the campus stores - at Hertford University, Cranfield University, Ulster University, Goldsmith's, Queen Mary College, and Royal Holloway, the last three all in London - will also be closed.