iPad magazines: Predictable publisher road-crash

Adam Tinworth says magazine publishers failed with the iPad because they focused on protecting business models, not delivering a better reader experience: iPad Magazines: a predictable publisher road-crash.

There was a time when publishers, including Rupert Murdoch, hailed the iPad as the industry’s saviour. The idea that the iPad would rescue publishers was never convincing.

I spent time playing with iPad publishing tools because I thought it might be a better way of delivering digital content to readers. I was attracted by the idea of distributing publications through iTunes.

It became clear that the cost and effort of producing a great looking iPad magazine wouldn’t pay off for a New Zealand publisher catering for a small audience. Scale is an issue.