Magazines Can’t Figure out the E-Reader Market Yet

In writing about…

Issuu Mobile for Android Magazine/Newspaper Reader

…yesterday, I noted: My anti-individual-book-in-an-app feeling also extends to individual magazine apps now (though I give magazines more leeway than ebooks). My contention is that individual e-document apps (ebooks or emagazines) is a waste of limited mobile resources. Other iPhone users in particular may not completely agree with me. But, whatever the case, Silicon Alley Insider reports…

Magazines Launch iPhone App Editions, But They’re Not Big Sellers

The article notes that the $2.99 iPhone issue apps of GQ and Esquire are neither in Apple’s top 100 best-selling apps nor the list of highest grossing apps.

One problem may be the price. $2.99 is considered somewhat expensive for an app. And, this is probably especially the case for content that may be near meaningless a mere 30 days later. The other is that GQ and Esquire may simply be uninteresting to the iPhone population.

Magazines should take a good look at Marvel Comics solution of providing their content through several ecomic reading apps. This lets the reader find an ecomic reading app that fits their reading style best (rather than assuming one reading style fits all) and provides a simple in=app method to purchase future issues.

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