Here’s an interesting article from Ad Age about how magazine publishers are trying to get a leg up on iTunes before the anticipated release of the Apple tablet.
Not to disparage Apple (because iTunes is very easy to use and the pricing is right for the content), but I would love to have a device independent version of “iTunes” to purchase content. I think Amazon is very well suited for that. The magazine industry, however, wants their own storefront so they can control distribution (pricing) of their content. Hahaha! Well, I hope publishers don’t get greedy and make their content so expensive that people turn to piracy or don’t get the information at all.
It will be interesting to see what the next generation of tablets are like. As of now readability is a issue with LCD screen and some of the e-reader devices have resolution and color limitations. Again, I can’t wait to see how laptops and e-readers will converge, both in terms of screen technology and usability.
I have seen some interesting Flash based e-magazines that could serve as prototypes for future e-readers. I especially like those e-magazines that allow for zooming in and links to other content. With schools looking harder at e-text books, I think we may be approaching a tipping point where e-reading begins to become the norm. I am eager to see what will happen with all of this in the next 5-yrs. How will this change “brick-and-mortar” bookstores (especially used book resellers)? Will this be end the “periodical” as we know it? Will be see micro-targeted advertisements in everything we e-read? And what will happen with books, newspapers, and magazines when reading becomes a shared experience through social networking? It’s a lot to noodle on and I’ll more to say about it after I digest things for a bit.
More Rambling 