Wired magazine is preparing an electronic version of its print publication for Apple’s forthcoming iPad tablet. According to an internal memo, the tech-savvy publication will be joined by a cross-section of other Condé Nast magazines including GQ, Glamour, Vanity Fair and The New Yorker. GQ will be the first to appear on the iPad debuting in April. Wired will follow with its June issue.
These new versions will be sold through iTunes. Pricing, advertising and exact formatting the issues are still up in the air. These titles will serve as a test-balloon to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the new format. Once these have been defined, in the fall the company may expand the number of titles available.
The concept of a modern take on periodicals is one of the more intriguing potential features of the iPad for me. This may serve as a lifeline to an industry rapidly in decline, just as iTunes helped slow (but not stop) the bleeding in the music business.
I already have a subscription to several magazines, including Wired, which I never have the time to sit down and read. I would be quite enthusiastic about being able to download the issues to my iPad and have them constantly at hand to be viewed when I have a spare moment. It seems like a winning proposition for everyone involved in the process, from the publishers, to advertisers, to the readers.
