News
The Danish Media Industry believes in the iPad07/07-2010
Since the iPad was launched in April it has reached record high sales numbers. In Scandinavia we are still waiting and the publishers are lining up to prepare themselves for the Scandinavian launch. Visiolink is currently experiencing extremely high demand for iPad Apps for reading.
Within only a few months the iPad has had great success with more than 3 million sold units worldwide. Moreover big newspapers such as the USA Today have had great success with their iPad App that has been downloaded in more than 500.000 copies. This success combined with the continual struggle of the media industry with declining circulation numbers is a contributing factor for the increased interest from media companies in acquiring an iPad App as soon as possible.Different solutions for different needs
Since the launch of the iPad Visiolink has received numerous inquiries from large as well as small publishers who are interested in getting iPad Apps. And in these hot summer days Visiolink's R&D department is finishing several large projects for some of the leading Danish media corporations as well as developing a Branded iPad App for a large Norwegian newspaper group.
As a prelude to these projects Visiolink has conducted several focus group meetings and workshops together with leading Danish media companies, where no less than six different kinds of solutions for the iPad were identified. Where other software vendors exclusively focus on simple Browser Based Apps Visiolink also develops Branded Apps.
”The Browser Based App is okay for media companies that can come to terms with the fact that readers won’t be able to download the publication and therefore constantly have to depend on a stable Internet connection. However we believe that this contradicts with the idea of a portable reading device such as the iPad. Furthermore a Browser Based App will not be available in Apple's App Store which prevents publishers from reaching certain target groups,” explains CEO of Visiolink Jens Funder Berg.
It is also our experience that the demand is highest for the Branded Apps because Branded Apps have obvious advantages compared to the Browser Based App. But not all publishers are convinced.
”We know that some publishers are reluctant to choose a Branded App because they fear that it will require more work and further production cost. But in that respect Visiolink's great advantage is our advanced Back-end system that allows us to integrate the editorial systems of the publishers and create an automated cost-effective process,” continues Jens Funder Berg, who is a great devotee of the Branded App.
”We believe that the Branded App will show our clients from their best side with a product that reflects their corporate style and design. The fact that the App can be sold in a widely acknowledged store such as Apple's App store will also help increase publisher brand recognition,” emphasizes Jens Funder Berg.
Complete availability on- and offline
One of the biggest advantages of the Branded App is the fact that the reader does not have to be constantly online in order to read the publication. In this way readers get a greater feeling of owning the publication because they only have to acquire it once.
“Every time readers are online the App will automatically find the latest publication from the publisher. This saves time and effort for the publishers that no longer has to call attention to every single publication,” explains Jens Funder Berg and he finishes:
“Whereas some people think it is still too risky to put a big stake in the iPad, I on the contrary believe, that the Apple tablet fully has proven its potential. Now it is simply up to the media industry to choose the proper iPad solution that best meets their demands.
