News Publishers Launch Joint Venture Targeting Digital Content Distribution

[lilo777]

Hmm, how to respond to this. Somehow "LOL " just doesn't quite say it.

Ask the music industry what their advice would be about about whether the publishing industry would do well to be as aware of, on top of, and concerned about Apple, its products, and its plans as possible.

And why exactly music industry should be concerned about Apple? Should it be worried that Apple all of a sudden would stop working with them?

 

[TheSlush]

And why exactly music industry should be concerned about Apple? Should it be worried that Apple all of a sudden would stop working with them?

Because while the music industry resisted changes to their business model, Apple swooped in with an end-to-end, forward-thinking, user-friendly solution and now essentially controls the music marketplace -- from the content to the devices that play the content -- as the number one digital music retailer. This means Apple has stolen enormous leverage in all aspects of the music marketplace, including even to set prices -- something no retailer has ever been able to do before.

(I'm not just making this up; the music execs complain about it all the time.)

The publishing industry (and movie industry before them) are scared of Apple exercising this all-encompassing influence over their industry in the same way.

 

[Boghog]

I see this as disturbing news. And here is why:
If Apple had a tablet more or less ready, they would have developed those very same standards the publishers are now trying to establish months or years ago. They would have given them to content developers in advance in order to have something to show at the great public unveiling. The same way they give developers advance copies of new OSs so that they can have their apps ready on launch day. Imagine a SJ keynote where he says: "We have this amazing new device. Unfortunately we can't show you what it can do because no one knew that it was coming and so there is no content"
We know Apple doesn't work like that.
And so the fact that these publishers seem to be still as much in the dark as we are about the tablet can mean only one thing IMO: There is no tablet. It was never more than a rumor - one that gathered momentum and somehow developed a life of its own.
I'd love to be proven wrong, of course.

 

[monkeyfoot7]

The goal of this digital initiative is fourfold, to create: a highly featured common reading application capable of rendering the distinctive look and feel of each publication; a robust publishing platform optimized for multiple devices, operating systems and screen sizes; a consumer storefront offering an extensive selection of reading options; and a rich array of innovative advertising opportunities.

is it just me, or did they describe a website?

 

[knewsom]

is it just me, or did they describe a website?

XD !!!!!

 

[lilo777]

Exactly

is it just me, or did they describe a website?

And this is why this has nothing to do with the tablet. Obviously they want to create a platform for distributing their content on all types of devices. I cannot imagine that their content would not be available on regular desktop or laptop. After all this is what most people already have.

 

[lightpeak]

Indeed. I think they're just scared of Apple (while they should be excited) and trying to get out of the gate first, with something, anything... in a futile attempt to preserve control and shovel some sand against the inevitable tide of Apple's tablet+iTunes dominance of the entire publishing marketplace.

The companies (music, media, whatever) that fear and complain about Apple are more focused on control than on pleasing the customer.

It already exists and it's called (dumb name) JooJoo. God, was that a fanboy-enough statement by you? Yep, nothing of any value ever exists unless it's invented or later bought by Apple. Keep drinking the Kool-Aid there, bub. ;-)

http://www.eweek.com/c/a/Windows/Jo...tfalls-for-Apple-Microsoft-Tablet-PCs-190089/

 

[lightpeak]

Slush, you need to be taken to task for what you said.

You basically saying there's a small handful of companies clumsily throwing out a half-baked tablet to board up the windows early in preparation for the (positive) tidal wave of the upcoming breakout hit Apple tablet. *add your own sunlight gleam here pinging off of the Apple tablet*

When in reality, Apple is possibly only getting started in releasing an untested tablet concept along with a couple of other companies, who have released one, betting it pans out into the possible "next big thing".

Me thinks if Apple hadn't gotten into the game, you'd be saying this concept is a risky endeavor that can prove both costly and embarrassing.

 

[Smallville]

I have to hope for this to work if I want to remain employed.

I write for a daily newspaper in a small town of 40,000. I make less than $30K per year, my benefits have been slashed, and my 401(k) lost half of its value.

The corporate executives that I and others like me work for have failed us at every level when it comes to embracing new technology. As someone who has not reached 30 years of age, I'm shocked by how far behind we've fallen when it comes to publishing our product.

I'd love for something like this to work. I don't care if the model is a subscription-based one or an advertising-based on.

Here's the thing people forget when bitching about wanting free content ... who do you expect to provide it on a full-time basis if people are not paid for their work?

Should someone like me put in 40 hours of volunteer work and live off of unemployment or food stamps because you want it for free? Screw you.

People have to work to make a living, and an industry that won't pay its people will have no people. You won't have any content, paid, free or otherwise. What will you do then? Blindly followed state-sponsored media? There's a killing blow to democracy.

I hope the industry can come up with something before it's too late. Otherwise the people like me, the people at the bottom rung of the industry ladder who are counted on to provide the content you want for free, will have to find other work. If you're lucky, you might still have bloggers who work from their homes.

 

[TheSlush]

Slush, you need to be taken to task for what you said.

You basically saying there's a small handful of companies clumsily throwing out a half-baked tablet to board up the windows early in preparation for the (positive) tidal wave of the upcoming breakout hit Apple tablet. *add your own sunlight gleam here pinging off of the Apple tablet*

When in reality, Apple is possibly only getting started in releasing an untested tablet concept along with a couple of other companies, who have released one, betting it pans out into the possible "next big thing".

Me thinks if Apple hadn't gotten into the game, you'd be saying this concept is a risky endeavor that can prove both costly and embarrassing.

LOL, now calm down, I think you read a bit too much into what I was saying. I wasn't trying to make a case for Apple's product awesomeness, just a case that other companies certainly respect and anticipate Apple's business model's influence on their own industries. I was characterizing the publishing industry's very probable mentality and motives in coming out with a premature, non-hardware-specific set of standards: to be pre-emptive of Apple's influence. You can bet they are extremely aware/concerned of the potential leverage of another Apple blockbuster product, and of iTunes' positioning as a clearing house for media content. They already have Apple's shake-up the music and wireless industries as case studies.

I certainly did not mean to imply that I thought Apple's tablet would be a glorious sunbeam-reflecting piece of perfection (although I think we'd all agree they have a pretty good track record).

 

[scroto]

Indeed. I think they're just scared of Apple (while they should be excited) and trying to get out of the gate first, with something, anything... in a futile attempt to preserve control and shovel some sand against the inevitable tide of Apple's tablet+iTunes dominance of the entire publishing marketplace.

The companies (music, media, whatever) that fear and complain about Apple are more focused on control than on pleasing the customer.

Why do you think most people will prefer a device over a real book? I'm just curious.

 

[TheSlush]

"Experience value"

Why do you think most people will prefer a device over a real book? I'm just curious.

I don't, at least not for a long time. I don't think real printed books are going anywhere for a while, because the current book experience is already pretty good. Books in all their forms tend to be slower, deliberate, invested, intimate, personal experiences. So there is still plenty of perceived "experience value" to the physical, tactile aspects of reading books: their various sizes, weights, textures, designs, etc. all contribute to the experience for the majority of bookreaders. That multi-sensory uniqueness can't be replicated digitally until we have true virtual reality.

But newspapers and magazines are different. They don't have as much riding on a multi-sensory experience. They aren't slow, unique, personal experiences. They are more fast, cursory, short-term, mass-quanity, disposable experiences by their nature. Their physical printing aspects tend to be commodity-based in general (high-end art magazines excepted, of course) and don't contribute to a personal, tactile experience which people value in books. So I suspect this periodical content will be the primary fodder for Apple's tablet, because there will not be as much "experience value" lost in the translation to a digital format. In fact, for periodicals there will only be "experience value" gains in a digital tablet format... at least from the standpoints of distribution, subscription, updatability, video, interactivity, polling, and other rich content.

 

[t0mat0]

So ias Amazon going to gofor this with Kindle?
Barnes & Noble with Nook?
Apple with an iTablet?

You've got to wonder how long Apple's been working on a tablet, expanding into published content.
This group is talking about intention late 2009. No standard, no details on their DRM. If Ihnatko's surmising about comic book distribution is right, Apple could start with their chosen areas for the tablet (comics, music , movies) and then bring in those who wan to get on board.

 

[Fukui]

Taligent!

 

[SactoGuy18]

Despite a lot of skepticism here, the entire periodical publishing industry will change because of the arrival of tablet computers from not only Apple, but likely Windows 7-based tablet computers from Asus, Dell, MSI, Toshiba, etc. and possibly a tablet computer running a touchscreen-aware version of Chrome OS.

(We should note that Windows 7's touchscreen support makes it very viable as an OS for a tablet computer. Based on what I've seen of Chrome OS, it appears Google may also add full touchscreen support along the way, too.)

2-3 years from now, tablet computers with very power-efficient Organic LED displays (which no longer need power-hungry backlighting LCD panels need today) may finally become reasonably priced. At that point, such a tablet computer will act not only as a portable computer (with optional keyboard) and also as a high-quality text reader at the same time. This opens the door for HIGHLY interactive digital periodical publications like that demo Time, Inc. recently showed based on Sports Illustrated magazine. Freed from the "dead tree" limitations of how many pages per issue, we could end up with longer articles, a lot more "sidebar" articles, and definitely a lot more pictures per article, too.

In the comics industry, it also means a lot faster delivery of the latest comics. Much of Scott McCloud's vision of the future of comics from his book Reinventing Comics now becomes a reality, especially given the enormous computing power of today's iMacs and Mac Pros. Indeed, we are starting to see this in Japanese manga, where Rumiko Takahashi's current series Kyoukai no Rin-ne is being published in Japan in Shogakukan's Shounen Sunday anthology and Viz Media's own web site in English-translated form on what amounts to almost the same publication date for each new episode!

Even the newspaper industry must embrace this new technology. I can see within two years Gannett's USA Today in a digital daily edition with highly interactive content far beyond their current digital daily edition (which currently is essentially a digitally-scanned version of the "static" published newspaper itself which is available 5:30 am Eastern time every weekday).

In short, the mainstream media realizes that they have to be relevant and must embrace digital distribution as they place less emphasis on "dead tree" distribution. With the plethora of tablet computers and laptops with full touchscreen functionality arriving over the next 2-3 years, the change will start to happen full-force.

 

[twoodcc]

i think they know that apple and others are bringing tablets out early next year