Think avid sock knitters aren’t using the Internet? Think again.

Enthusiast crafts publisher Interweave is launching Sockupied, its second digital edition designed specifically to be viewed on a computer. The first, Quilting Arts in Stitches, launched earlier this summer. Interweave says sock knitting, believe it or not, is one of the company’s fastest-growing interest areas among its core knitting audience.

According to book author and Sockupied editor Anne...more

New Yorker’s Digital Edition Gets an Optimized for iPad

Condé Nast’s The New Yorker has made a change that will allows iPad users to access to the magazine’s archive online.

Until recently, the magazine’s digital edition has not been compatible with the Safari browser, which is supported by the Apple iPad. But the magazine has reportedly updated the digital edition to automatically recognize users coming in from...more

On the heels of announcing its new Digital Publishing 2.0 strategy, publishing software company Quark says it has signed on as a “platinum” sponsor of the 2010 Digital Magazine Awards—a global competition to honor the best in digital magazines.

The competition is accepting entries for nearly 20 categories. Some include: Magazine Launch of the Year, Editor of the Year, Designer of the...more

Yes, People Are Excited About Digital, Mobile

Digital publishing vendor Texterity has released the results of its annual Profile of the Digital Edition Reader, which it conducted with BPA Worldwide. Not surprisingly, Texterity says the results confirm an increasing enthusiasm for and reliance on digital and mobile formats.

According to the results, 86 percent of the more than 31,000 respondents polled indictaed that they are either satisfied or...more

Digital edition provider Nxtbook Media and Joe Pulizzi—custom content “evangelist” and founder of content matching site Junta 24—have created a new company called Talefoundry that offers custom digital media solutions and services for small and mid-sized publishers who may not have the internal resources to fulfill those programs themselves.

“We had publishers looking to push the envelope further than the typical digital replica magazine but were limited by how much...more

There seems to be almost no end to the number of mobile ad networks popping up, such as Jumptap, Millenial Media and Quattro. Apple offers its own ad network in iAd, which serves ads to the iPhone and iPad (with publishers getting a 60 percent cut and Apple keeping 40 percent).
 
Increasingly, digital magazine vendors are getting into the act, offering either their own networks or solutions that pull...more

While digital editions are a common format for producing show guides and show dailies, apps are becoming another popular platform for integrating dailies along with much more functionality. Penton Media's Custom Solutions group partnered with the Food Marketing Institute to build an app for FMI's annual event, FMI 2010, in May. The app, which essentially wraps a show program, show dailies, exhibit...more

As tablet application development continues across the industry, publishers are working closely with agencies and clients to develop advertising functionality and formats that fully leverage the tablet experience—with a goal of making the ad rival the actual content in terms of user experience.

Sports Illustrated, which released its first issue for the iPad on June 24, has seven launch sponsors—all are in for...more

MagMe Launches

Another player has emerged on the digital magazine vendor market: MagMe. The new platform debuted in beta earlier this month at the 2010 FOLIO: Show in New York City.The platform features intuitive navigational and viewing capabilities, online shopping functions, and social media tools, as well as what the company says are “superior” visuals and viewing features.

What sets MagMe’s business plan...more

IDG's Macworld and PCWorld magazines have had digital editions for years but they're just starting to realize the potential of the platform, thanks to the iPad. While Macworld and PCWorld averaged 600 monthly downloads combined for their digital editions, the iPad versions are generating 8,000 monthly downloads combined and a Macworld special edition about the launch of the iPad has generated about 90,000 downloads (and...more

At a time when magazine publishers are racing to market with applications for tablets and smartphones, Bonnier Corp. and Interweave have launched new digital products specifically for viewing on desktops and laptops.

As part of the magazine’s broader “360-degree multiplatform initiative,” Bonnier’s Skiing magazine has developed Skiing Interactive, a digital edition with unique content and advertising that was developed specifically for accessing on a...more

For now, publishers are merely experimenting with pricing for full magazine apps on smartphones and tablet devices. A baseline at this point is still a moving target. On the one hand, publishers don't want to get trapped in devaluing digital content again, and with all the production work involved in the versions that are not simply digital edition repeats, but have added content, robust...more