Apple's Newsstand to get exclusive early access to Hearst publications
In a new deal with Hearst that went active on Thursday, Apple is offering iPad versions of the publisher's catalog days before they release on other platforms, including print editions.
Newsstand's new "Read Them Here First" category. | Source: iTunes
According to TechCrunch, iPad users will get issues "a few days" in before other outlets like Amazon's Kindle Marketplace, though availability varies by publication. Both new and current subscribers will have access to the feature.
The new Newsstand section, called "Read Them Here First," offers 20 Hearst magazines including Road & Track, Bazaar and Esquire. According to the iTunes description, the magazines are available to download "before they appear in print or any other digital edition."
Hearst's first title to hit Newsstand was Esquire in 2010 after an experimental one-off "interactive edition" of Popular Mechanics was released earlier that year. In 2011, the publisher's CEO David Carey lauded Apple's iPad distribution model as being "efficient" compared to other digital marketplaces carrying the company's magazines.
News of the Hearst arrangement comes just hours after Rolling Stone debuted in Newsstand earlier on Thursday.
Newsstand's new "Read Them Here First" category. | Source: iTunes
According to TechCrunch, iPad users will get issues "a few days" in before other outlets like Amazon's Kindle Marketplace, though availability varies by publication. Both new and current subscribers will have access to the feature.
The new Newsstand section, called "Read Them Here First," offers 20 Hearst magazines including Road & Track, Bazaar and Esquire. According to the iTunes description, the magazines are available to download "before they appear in print or any other digital edition."
Hearst's first title to hit Newsstand was Esquire in 2010 after an experimental one-off "interactive edition" of Popular Mechanics was released earlier that year. In 2011, the publisher's CEO David Carey lauded Apple's iPad distribution model as being "efficient" compared to other digital marketplaces carrying the company's magazines.
News of the Hearst arrangement comes just hours after Rolling Stone debuted in Newsstand earlier on Thursday.
Comments
The Newstand gives Apple a leg up on Amazon. iBooks could use some work to compete seriously with Kindle, but Newstand stands out compared to periodical sales from Amazon. I love the WSJ app in Newstand.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SpamSandwich
Meh. Exclusives are fine... I guess. Who really cares about magazines anymore? The whole industry is deader than dead.
I certainly don't care about the WORD "magazine," and I don't care whether someone considers a magazine app to be a "real" magazine or not. I do care about content, under whatever name. I like content being varied, with competition for quality, and I like content being available in lots of different formats and styles. And I do appreciate that ads alone are the only business model worth having for content. Newsstand apps, for instance!
Go Apple, go, go, go...
So AAPL will drop another 3% on Friday.
Magazines should have targeted the Internet long ago, they are essentially aimed at special interests or subcultures and what better way to find your audience than the Internet. All that was need was something better than a crumby old website, such as a Retina iPad with PDF based pages and then it's $$$.
They should all follow HBO's lead. Every show is available on HBO GO immediately after it airs.
Originally Posted by dasanman69
They should all follow HBO's lead. Every show is available on HBO GO immediately after it airs.
I was thinking more "simultaneously with broadcast", myself.
Actually, "downloading before the broadcast starts, but not playable until your computer clock hits X:X0:00."
Side note but I wonder if the future is each network having their own app that they upload content to, versus Apple having to demand networks to put content directly onto iTunes?
Well I guess Apple wouldn't make as much money if it were done via app versus direct in iTunes.
Problem with that is that there's 2 broadcasts in many cases. A east and a west, that complicates things.
Well 3 of them already have a app (Hulu Plus) they just needed more storage space to have all their content available. I'd be willing to pay extra pay for that.
I don't know how every TV app works but a lot of the network apps require you have a cable/satellite subscription in order to access the content on their apps.
If the apps weren't dependent on cable/satellite providers I'm sure more people would buy/rent content directly from networks right on their iDevices.
Hulu Plus is nice but I think their service should be free as it is online. And I wish they had CBS content.
Another side note but it would be interesting if Apple offered TV shows and movies for free with iAds. That could potentially be good for iTunes, iAds, and consumers.