Newsstand Apps reinvent Magazines for Mobile

By: Gadjo Sevilla

December 27, 2013

google-play-newsstand

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

One of the biggest draws of mobile devices is how they have evolved the way we consume magazines and newspapers. Here are some new approaches in making magazines mobile.

Apple, BlackBerry and Google all have similarly named Newsstand apps and services that are their particular take on reading on mobile devices. While the range and pricing of the digital publications varies greatly depending on the end-user’s location, all three of these apps boast thousands of International publications readily available for subscription or individual issue purchase.

BlackBerry Newsstand

BlackBerry no longer makes a tablet, that’s why their Newsstand initiative is tailored around its touchscreen-enabled devices, the Z10 and the Z30.

BlackBerry Newsstand gives you access to a global catalog of thousands of magazine titles across news, sports, fashion, arts and other genres. Newsstand’s Anytime feature makes it possible for users to browse and download Anytime magazine titles for free – up to 20 minutes per month.

All compatible BlackBerry 10 users also receive a free 7-day trial of Anytime, after which, they can choose to pay a monthly fee to continue using it. All magazines are also available for purchase individually.

Google Play Newsstand

An evolution of their earlier Magazines app, Google’s Play Newsstand is a consolidated way to, “put the news you care about most front and center and presents stories that interest you based on your tastes.”

Because of advanced search, tracking and learning algorithms, the more you read the better the service will get.

You can subscribe to magazines, newspapers, blogs and news sites and Google auto-formats and optimizes them all for reading on your tablet or phone. The heavy lifting and reformatting happens in Google’s cloud servers, which is quite remarkable.

Google knows that magazine reading on a phone screen is tiresome. Limited screen real estate plus graphics-heavy content can take time to cover.

So, Google has been working hard to put those magazines in a format that’s easier to read while giving the content providers artistic liberty to post those articles in a way that’s readable and acceptable to them as well.

 

Apple Newsstand

Apple’s Newsstand is the originator of the shift from print to tablet versions. Their Newsstand service is an app that resembles a newsagent’s store with a virtual shelf carrying virtual magazines. Click on a magazine and it flies open on your screen where it can either be read like a traditional magazine page by page, or it will introduce interactive elements like video, animation and sound.

Having had a head start in the game has given Newsstand on the iPad a tremendous advantage. Digital editions of publications like Wired Magazine (http://bit.ly/JaE6FT), are replete with interactive elements and experiences that make full use of the iPad’s technology. Many magazines now bundle their digital editions with their print subscriptions.

These three Newsstand apps vary in their approach. Google’s Newsstand is on so many devices of varying shapes that has decided to reformat content on the. Apple’s Newsstand approach is to merge print content with multimedia and interactive elements. BlackBerry is all about working with smaller screens.

This is all good news for users who now have an abundance of magazines and newspapers to explore on their mobile devices.


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