IPad Apps Make Room For Content, Visuals
Anticipating an uptick in tablet usage and an opportunity to grow its subscriber base and offer more content within its publications, Hearst Newspapers has rolled out a series of iPad apps for its four major dailies. The apps, which share the same architecture and functionality, debuted with the San Francisco Chronicle in June, followed by the Houston Chronicle, San Antonio Express-News and the Albany (N.Y.) Times-Union.
“It has allowed [the papers] to be more of a regional publisher and has also brought back some of the national coverage and things that they wouldn’t have necessarily put into the print product just because of space and audience,” Brophy said.
She said that Hearst launched the first app in San Francisco because of a combination of substantial iPad penetration and the proximity of Apple’s headquarters. According to a Hearst survey, 12% of readers already had iPads, while another 13% planned to buy one in the next year. This was coupled with Apple’s support and encouragement, Brophy added, noting that the app debuted during Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference and was among the first publications to launch with the iPad’s Newsstand feature.
The Chronicle’s app has enjoyed substantial free publicity since, Brophy said, taking its place next to The New York Times’ app in all of the promotional and advertising material for Newsstand. “We get a good amount of love from Apple,” she said.
Hearst has also been getting good feedback from users. Though Hearst doesn’t share download figures, Brophy said readers have been drawn to the app’s carousel browsing function, which gives them a quick shorthand visual way of scrolling between lead stories and sections of each paper. It also features sections left out of Hearst’s other mobile apps like comics, and it will soon add puzzles into the mix, which Brophy said have been much in demand.
As content continues to be added, the app’s form will be evolving as well. While each app launched in two available forms — “today’s edition,” which is an exact, static replica of the print edition and “live edition,” which is constantly updated — Brophy said the static edition will be phased out sometime in the next year.
“Now that we’re out and we understand it more, we don’t think that we need that replica,” she said.
Another lesson learned was counter to oft-cited data that tablet use climbs in primetime. Not so with the Hearst apps, Brophy said. “We find that the high volume usage is between 6 and 9 a.m. and there’s a little bump around 8-10 at night,” she said, noting that feedback indicates readers are using the app as an alternative to the physical paper.
After a free trial, those users also need to pay $5.99 a month or $59.99 a year to subscribe to the app. Readers in the papers’ delivery areas are also eligible for a Sunday copy of the print edition with their app subscription, while full subscribers to print can get the app for free.
Brophy said the revenue model draws from a combination of those subscriptions and interstitial and display ads, a model which may also get some tweaking in 2012, when apps for additional tablet devices will also roll out.
Vital stats:
Launched: San Francisco Chronicle — June 2011; Houston Chronicle — September 2011; San Antonio Express-News and Albany Times-Union — November 2011
Cost to consumers: $5.99 per month; $59.99 per year (free 30-day trial)
Compatible devices: iPad (other tablets forthcoming 2012)
White label version: No
Number of downloads: N/A
Key characteristics: Expanded regional and national coverage from print editions of the newspapers; embedded AP and YouTube videos; original image galleries; “carousel” browsing option for optimized viewing experience
Read other stories in this series by clicking here. To recommend other apps to profile, contact us at netnews@newscheckmedia.com.
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