iPad vs. publishing

In the last couple of moths iPad seems to be the center of gadget universe. While waiting for the release scheduled for April 3, 2010 (Wi-Fi model) or better late April 2010 (Wi-Fi + 3G model), many speculations regarding the use and implications of this tablet computer arose. Although it seems that critics are not nearly unified, iPad could (or better should) in turn affect existing publishing practices, especially in the sphere of newspapers, as Joe Zeff suggests in his post.

When released, the iPad will include the iBooks application, which displays books and other ePub-format content downloaded from the iBookstore. Five of the US’ six largest publishers (Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, HarperCollins and Penguin) have already reached deals with Apple to sell their books through iBookstore, reported the New York Times. In an interview Condé Nast Publications representative said they will have available iPad subscriptions for its GQ, Vanity Fair, Wired, The New Yorker and Glamour magazines by June.

What about newspapers? For now it seems that newspapers will be read as (free) on-line versions (using Safari) But will this suffice? Not necessarily, because this could mean that newspapers are not competitive enough to follow current trends. As Joe Zeff wrote:

"Newspapers are challenged to deliver a product that surpasses their print, mobile and online editions. Otherwise, what’s the point of reading an iPad edition, let alone paying for one? It needs to offer something not found in the traditional version already in your briefcase and the up-to-the-second version already in your pocket."

He also poses some interesting suggestions such as content with less time-sensitivity and greater multimedia potential could shift into apps, and on the other hand »news you can use«: Like a newspaper, the iPad becomes a tool, which helps a user find a new house by showing him property values, school information etc.

Perhaps newspapers should consider adapting to new circumstances in the media landscape, because outlook of the near future suggests that iPad could become a widely used appliance and not just a gadget for the technophiles and Apple fans. Newspapers could see iPads as a niche and present themselves in new, even more interactive form, attracting the expectedly large population of users-to-be.

photo: www.apple.com