Small book retailers were buying in bulk from major online booksellers because they could really save some money. One was buying up to 70 copies of a particular title -- it was $5 less a pop from the big guys than it would have been from the publisher. Finally, however, the big retailers have become wise to the trend and taken action, according to the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).

Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), and Target (NYSE: TGT) have decided to cap the number of books customers can buy online, a measure intended to prevent smaller competitors from treating them as partners. Walmart is limiting customers to two copies of a particular book, with Amazon placing the border at three and Target at five.

To be honest, I'm not a big fan of chain bookstores. First off, my cousins own a large independent bookstore in Massachusetts, and, as long as business is good for them, my big "family discount" is safe. However, beyond my personal connections, I don't really like the way that chain bookstores control access to titles, artificially control the bestseller lists, and squeeze out independent booksellers. Frankly, it just creeps me out.

That having been said, I kind of like Barnes & Noble, Inc. (NYSE: BKS). They tend to have a good selection of bargain books, usually offer patrons some nice spaces to sit and read, and generally have a pretty broad selection. Because of this, I was a little alarmed as I watched their stock take a little tumble this week. Based on its own predictions that this year's profits will fall well short of forecasts, B&N experienced a 5% drop in value to $26.95. As of this writing, it's currently trading at $26.26.

Part of this isn't Barnes and Noble's fault. First off, without a new Harry Potter book coming out this year, every bookseller is going to have massively diminished revenues. Additionally, I imagine that book revenues will drop as many readers, facing diminished money for luxury expenditures, will rediscover the wonders of their local libraries.