Over a year after the launch of the iPad the mystery of whether the iPad would be a huge success or colossal failure has been answered. Publishers were left with no choice, they had to jump on the Apple bandwagon to have visibility on the iPad. This was new territory for publishers and they were and still are weathering the storm of high development costs, withering ROI projections, platform revenue sharing and lack of digital revenue.Reflecting back on birth year of the tablet one thing is clear, app developers benefited the most (financially) by the disruption caused by the iPad (and later other tablets). And they will continue to earn big bucks until publishers become more knowledgeable about mobile platforms.
Magazine publishers are betting heavily on the tablet platform, aggressively enticing new customers and existing subscribers to embrace their digital versions.
Hearst and Conde Nast both struck deals with Apple in May, permitting consumers to subscribe through the iTunes Store -- deals that closely followed redesigned apps from the likes of GQ and Vanity Fair.
With Apple unveiling its newsstand in September, each publisher will be put to the test. Though each one will have a different presence -- they offer differing amounts of titles for the iPad -- the next few months are shaping up to be very revealing, especially with Amazon rumored to be launching a tablet soon.
