Ikea Changes Design Of Popular Bookcase - NPR

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According to The Economist magazine, Ikea is changing the design of its popular Billy Bookcases to make the shelves deeper. The magazine asserts that's because Ikea thinks its customers will use the shelves for ornaments and tchotchkees – not books. But an Ikea spokesman insists "Billy is best for books."

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STEVE INSKEEP, host: It's been a watershed year for e-Books. Amazon said this spring it sells more electronic books than any format of print books. And this morning, we're following up on another development seen as a sign of the impending death of traditional books, or at least their decline.

The Economist magazine says IKEA is changing the design of its popular Billy Bookcases to make the shelves deeper. The magazine asserts that's because IKEA thinks its customers will use the shelves for ornaments and chotchkies, not for books. So we reached out to an IKEA spokesman who says not exactly. The spokesman insists: Billy is best for books, and contends the change to the bookcase was made simply to allow people to store bigger books.

So if you buy that story, coffee table books are apparently the future.

It's MORNING EDITION from NPR News. I'm Steve Inskeep.

DAVID GREENE, host: And I'm David Greene.

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