Shoveling from Two Piles: How Will Publishers Solve the Conundrum of the iPad?
Publishers can now shovel from two sources: print and online. Will they shovel again when migrating to the tablet? Or will they think anew?
Publishers can now shovel from two sources: print and online. Will they shovel again when migrating to the tablet? Or will they think anew?
Penguin is experimenting with the iPad, and sharing what they’re thinking in this video demo. It’s pretty amazing stuff.
Publishers may have won the pricing war, but the real struggle is now on for users’ attention. Because the iPad is not a dedicated e-book reader there are, unfortunately, many things that users can do with the device other than read books. Unlike the Kindle, where publishers have the device all to themselves iPad users will be able to surf the Web, play games, watch movies, view their photo collections, listen to music, watch TV, send e-mail, work on a presentation, or access over one hundred thousand applications that do any number of distracting things.
The iPad moves electronic reading to a multi-function device, marking the end of proprietary interfaces controlling commerce for e-reading.
Initial impressions of Apple’s new iPad device — how the tech press is missing the meaning, what it might mean for publishers, and a chance to tell us what you think.