Beyond tech geeks and Mac fanatics, the unveiling of Apple’s iPad on Wednesday also captured unabashed attention from the business world, from newspaper publishers to telecommunications executives.
The latest iteration of the tablet PC — billed by some as an iPod Touch on steroids — could change the way magazines are read, textbooks are sold and business is conducted.
It could help print publishers in their long-struggling pursuit of operating profitably in a digital world.
“The iPad and other tablet devices have the potential to revolutionize newspaper publishing,” said Roger Fidler, program director for digital publishing at the Reynolds Journalism Institute at the University of Missouri.
Unlike Amazon and its Kindle e-reader, Apple won’t act as a middleman for publishers, which means newspapers would be able to sell subscriptions to their digital editions on the iPad and tie them into their own circulation database, Fidler said.
“It also means that they would have greater freedom in being able to incorporate advertising into their editions,” he said.
Some newspapers, including The New York Times and ap’s El Paso Times, have already developed reader applications for the iPhone, and those apps will work with the iPad.
“The iPad certainly has the potential to feature newspapers in a digital format that’s different from a website and evoke the traditional print design, and adds the ability to include, say, videos instead of just a photo on the front page,” said Gil Asakawa, manager of audience development for ap Interactive, the online division of Denver- based ap, owner of The Denver Post.
The iPad has several distinctions from previous failed tablet efforts, including a starting price of $499. Existing tablets can cost upward of $1,500.
The iPad’s 9.7-inch screen, portability and 10-hour battery life could prove to be the right model for digital textbooks and magazines.
“Some might say it’s too big to fit in my pocket,” said Luke Beatty, founder of Associated Content, a Denver-based online provider of news, instructions and other information. “When you’re talking about the consumption of certain kinds of media, it’s going to be just right.”
For businesses such as Broomfield-based Level 3 Communications, the iPad — with Wi-Fi and 3G Internet capability — could help with “out in the field” work.
“We’re really excited in terms of how that enables content distribution anywhere and everywhere,” said Peter Neill, senior vice president of the Content Markets Group at Level 3 Communications. “I could absolutely see it being used in a business function. It’s kind of a good in-between (with) the iPhone and the PC.”
Andy Vuong: 303-954-1209 or avuong@denverpost.com
