If The Spec Is Dead So Is The Nexus Tablet

It seems the much-rumored Google Nexus Tablet is nearing release. Citing Basemark benchmarking reports, the device is supposedly codenamed Grouper, running Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean) and employing a 7-inch, 1280 x 768 display powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core Tegra 3. If true, this means the upcoming tablet will likely lack 4G wireless connectivity since Nvidia’s latest SoC is incompatible with current 4G chipsets. Without 4G, and since this is a forward-thinking Nexus device, it’s safe to say that the tablet will lack a data wireless radio of any sort and will instead ship with just WiFi.
Besides, even without the compatibility issues (which might be resolved), Google will not be able to launch a wireless-enabled tablet at a Kindle Fire price. They can’t in essence eat their Jelly Bean and have it too.
Much like the so-called spec, performance is dead. It’s meaningless in today’s post-PC devices. Either the device, such as a tablet, works, or it does not. A quad-core chip like the Tegra 3 used here does not improve Angry Birds. There is simply an expectation by the consumer that a device works, and if it does not, then it’s worthless. Comparing clock speed or data throughput between different modern SoCs is worthless. Consumers are shopping for functionality rather than performance. A Nexus tablet without 3G/4G is doomed to the niche market.
Google recently started selling unlocked Galaxy Nexus smartphones from the Google Play storefront. This in theory could also work for wireless tablet. For whatever reason Android tablets with wireless connectivity are strangely tied to 2 year wireless data contracts. This makes them horrible buys compared to the iPad that’s sold with just an extra surcharge for the option. Not only do these tabs generally carry a similar price, but they lock buyers into a 2-year contract that greatly inflates the overall cost. In a perfect world Google would bypass the carriers, and sell an unlocked Nexus tablet in this same storefront — expect a WiFi model to be available there, though.
The Nexus brand has always been a sort of geek device, targeting Android’s core audience rather than the general consumer. Even the name, a nod to Blade Runner, is an inside joke among its users. But a Nexus Tablet is supposed to be something different. It’s supposed to be a Google’s answer to the iPad and the Kindle Fire.
Ignoring different platforms, the iPad and Kindle Fire hold a dominant chunk of the total tablet marketshare. For various reasons pure Honeycomb tablets do not sell in overwhelming numbers. Simply put, most of the Android tabs from Samsung, Motorola and Asus are priced similarly to the iPad and do not offer a significant advantage. The Kindle Fire is different, though.
Amazon got the Kindle Fire right. By pricing it at $200 and skinning it with a consumer-friendly GUI, the tablet targeted the huge audience of curious onlookers. It didn’t need 3G wireless to sell versus the iPad. The low price was justification enough.
Amazon wisely built the tablet around its robust content offering, allowing the retailer to sell the tablet with a very slim margin. Traditional tablet makers like Samsung and Motorola do not have this luxury. These consumer electronic companies need to turn a profit from the hardware. Amazon, and Apple for that matter, can rely on retail channels to make up for the smaller margins on the device itself.
Google is going to have the same problem with the Nexus tablet. It’s unclear if Google Play can provide enough back-end revenue to support a low price for the Nexus Tab. It’s rumored to retail for $199 to $249, providing a Honeycomb (or even Jelly Bean) alternative to the Kindle Fire. Today’s rumor peg the device with a top-of-the-line Tegra 3 SoC and a quality screen. These are not inexpensive parts like Amazon uses in the Kindle Fire. Samsung sells its less capable Galaxy Tab 7.0 for $349. But without wireless connectivity, the only advantage Google has will be price. Without a low price and wireless connectivity, the Google Nexus Tablet will be just another also-ran Android tab.

11:09 by Robert dawne · 1

Google+ Local Unlocks the Power of Zagat

Google+ rolled out on Wednesday a new ‘Local’ tool that allows users to share and find information about nearby places — from museums and spas to restaurants and hotels. In addition to tapping a user’s network or “Circles,” the new service also incorporates information from Zagat, which Google bought last year.
The new “Local” tab, located on the right-hand side of Google+, encourages users to learn more about the places around them. For example, by searching for a restaurant or store through the tab, a Google+ page will appear with photos, as well as Zagat scores and summaries, reviews from people you know and other information such as addresses and hours of business.

Google is leveraging its acquisition of Zagat in September 2011 to bring more than 35,000 reviews and scores across 100 countries to the Google+ community. The latest “Local” effort is a year in the making, according to Google.
“This takes any place that your friends have touched and provides you with interesting and relevant search results,” Avni Shah, director of product management at Google, told Mashable. “You can also filter based on aspects that might be important, such as ‘People Like You’ and really give you the information you need from the people you trust.”


When logged in to Google+, this information will appear in Google searches and via Google Maps and mobile. The capability is only available for Android phones now, but Google said it will roll out to iOS devices soon.
Those not signed in to Google+ will still see Zagat reviews and recommendations pop up while doing a search, but only users who are signed in will gain a deeper look at where their friends like to dine or restaurants that might be a best match for your taste.
“Since your friends haven’t always been to the places you want to go, if you are going to London or Bangkok, Google+ Local will look at places you have rated highly before and make similar recommendations,” Shah said.
Want to make a reservation after oogling your friends’ favorite spots? You can do that too, thanks to Google+ Local’s integration with Open Table.
“We want to build a community based on a sense of trust, and we will continue to roll out new features and tools that reinforce that that concept,” Shan said.

10:33 by Robert dawne · 1

20 Mouthwatering Instagram Pics [FOOD PORN]

The Best of Instagram Series is presented by T-Mobile. Its 4G Tweet Race, a week-long campaign launching May 3, pits Twitter users against one another in a daily, frantic race for retweets. There are 7 races, and the winners of each heat win a new HTC One™ S phone with a year of T-Mobile’s Unlimited Value service, and the final winner takes home $4,000.
Instagram users often get a bit of flack for oversharing their food photos. Now that the photo-sharing app is available for iOS, Android and possibly soon Facebook, we expect the user base and the photo uploads to surge.
But that’s not to say all photos aren’t worth sharing. Sure, maybe there are a swarm of users who like to share photos of their Subway sandwich, but there are also tons of gorgeous pictures of food and beverages that will make your mouth water.
We’ve collected photos from Instagram users, professional photographers and even chefs to present you with 20 of the tastiest photos. (Note: You can’t actually eat them.)
Do you think your food photos have what it takes? Let us know in the comments.

11:27 by Robert dawne · 0

Everyone’s Curious About Instagram; Android App Hits 5 Million Downloads

What a week.  As if being purchased for $1 Billion by the most influential social media company in the world wasn’t enough, Instagram has just reached 5 million downloads for the Android version of their photo software — and that’s in 6 days.  We reported when they hit a million earlier this week, and now it looks like they’ve continued their ascent.  Judging by my personal experience, I can see that there is definitely a buzz about Instagram — people are wondering what exactly it is after the Facebook purchase and this may have led to a snowball effect for the app.
As reported first by The Next Web, by studiously watching the Google Play page for the Instagram app, the app has now jumped into the category of “5,000,000 – 10,000,000″ installs where it was previously in the “1,000,000 – 5,000,000″ install range.  I’ve picked up the application myself, and while I still think it’s a close call with Camera ZOOM FX, Instagram’s ability to auto upload and share with others is pretty slick.
Are you using Instagram for Android?

10:32 by Robert dawne · 1

Sprint Galaxy Nexus Launch Rumors Look To New, Later Date

It's no secret that the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, after making its international and Verizon LTE debuts, will be coming to Sprint and its new LTE network. Just when that's going to be, however, is one detail Sprint's been keeping from us all. All the latest rumors seem to be looking to a mid-April launch, with both the Galaxy Nexus and LG Viper, the other LTE model to kick-off Sprint's network, tipped for April 15. At least, that's what we had been hearing, but over the weekend a new leak arrived, suggesting that the Sprint Galaxy Nexus might have a slightly longer wait before it launches.

As far as visually convincing leaks go, this find leaves a lot to be desired. Just a basic word processor document, it does little to try and convince us it's an official internal publication. That said, if we're to have a little faith here, the leak suggests that the LG Viper will, in fact, launch on April 15 as we'd heard, but the Galaxy Nexus won't hit stores for another week after at, finally landing on April 22.

Sprint and HTC have an event planned for Wednesday, and while we don't expect to hear anything about the Nexus directly, Sprint may offer a little insight while discussing its general LTE launch plans.

08:30 by iliot Atlas · 0

IDC: Apple’s iPad Rules Tablet Sales Today But Android Makers Will Overtake It By 2016

With news of Apple’s new iPad selling out its first run due to overwhelming demand, 2012 is off to a galloping start for the tablet market; and because of that IDC is upping its forecasts for how many “media” tablets will be shipped this year. The analysts predict that the number will top 106.1 million units, up from their previous forecast of 87.7 million units, due in part to strong demand for that new iPad, but also a number of other devices at a range of price points.
Indeed, while Apple will continue to be the single biggest tablet maker on the market, Android, collectively, will continue to hold its own against it, with some notable devices like the Amazon Kindle Fire doing particularly well. But it will not be until 2016 — four years from now — that IDC thinks that Android shipments will outnumber those of iOS.
Even though the Kindle Fire was available only in the U.S. in Q4, IDC says that the $199 device accounted for 16.8 percent of all tablet shipments in Q4 2011, or some 4.7 million units, making it the largest “Android” vendor. Samsung, despite its multiple Android tablets, was bumped down to second-biggest Android maker with a 5.8 percent share of the market. Barnes & Noble and Pandigital, the other top Android tablet makers, both saw their shares of shipments slide. The tablets to watch, it seems, are those that combine low price with high content promise.
None of that was a match for Apple, however, which accounted for 54.7 percent of all shipments in Q4, or 15.4 million units. While that was a rise of 110 percent over the year before, that still did not outpace the overall growth of the tablet market, which IDC says grew by 155 percent between the two quarters. Overall, Android tablets accounted for 44.6 percent of all sales, while RIM’s PlayBook slipped down to 0.7 percent from 1.1 percent a year before.
A couple of things worth noting about IDC’s numbers, taken from its quarterly tablet and e-reader tracker:
Although many predict that e-readers will eventually die a death blow dealt by tablets, for the moment their fortunes look okay. They grew less than half as well as tablets did — up by 64.3 percent between Q4 2011 and 2011 — but they are still on the rise, with e-reader makers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kobo in total shipping 10.7 million units in the quarter.
IDC gives no weight to Microsoft and its new, tablet-friendly Window 8 platform in its “media tablet” forecasts. As we saw last month, there are a number of devices being built on the OS, and if you believe all the reports, there will be more coming from the likes of Nokia to add to that. These are not expected to start shipping in earnest until much later this year. In its forecast, “others” apart from iOS and Android account for only a tiny sliver of overall shipments — and, by default, sales.
And that’s the other point always worth remembering about shipments. This tends to be the metric tracked most closely by analysts, because they get their numbers from device makers but also the channels that receive and distribute them; the shipment numbers are based on estimated demand. Ultimately, though, sometimes these shipments are out of sync with how a product actually gets bought — although analysts usually say that in the long run those corrections are accounted for with fewer shipments in subsequent quarters.

06:01 by Robert dawne · 0

LG Optimus Vu Goes Up For Sale As Pricing Info Revealed

Whether you look at them as jumbo-sized smartphones, mini tablets, or have come up with some cute portmanteau to try and cram the words together, there's no denying that the mid-size five-to-seven-inch range has been getting a lot more attention as of late. That's due in no small part to Samsung and its Galaxy Note, with a 5.3-inch display that really pushes the limits of how large a display a device can get away with while still being a phone. We learned last month that LG had been toying with a similar idea, and would be giving its upcoming Optimus Vu Android a five-inch screen in an atypical 4:3 aspect ratio. Today LG announces initial availability for the Vu, but with a price tag that may have you rethinking just how much a large screen is worth.

Sales of the Optimus Vu begin today in Korea. If you go to check out the Android at a retailer, make sure you bring a high-limit credit card, because off-contract sales of the Vu work out to the equivalent of nearly $900.

There are plenty of good reasons why smartphones are so expensive, and we could probably live with a price that was just a hundred dollars or so cheaper, but it really starts to get difficult rationalizing the sticker price as we approach the $1000 mark.

From its specs, it sounds like the Vu could be a very solid phone, and though it's not for everyone, we're sure that the unusual size and shape will win it a few big fans. Unless LG makes the handset more affordable as it spreads to additional markets around the globe, though, it could be difficult to convince consumers to give the Vu a chance.

15:22 by Robert dawne · 0

Chrome Beta for Android Hacked, Works On More Devices

If you've got an Android-powered tablet or smartphone and haven't been able to install the new Google Chrome Beta, you're in luck!

XDA-Developer lenny_kano has put together an .apk that should let you run the browser on any device running on an ARM v7 or higher chip -- so long as you're also running Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich.

If you are, and you'd like to try out Chrome Beta, head over to this thread on XDA-Developers, download the .apk, and side-load it onto your device. Enjoy!

07:08 by Robert dawne · 0

Google Updates Trio of Apps: Wallet, Authenticator, Google+

Google is celebrating Leap Day with a few minor updates to some of its Android apps, delivering new versions of Wallet, Google+, and Authenticator to the Android Market today.

Google Wallet finds itself getting the most significant updates of the trio, but we're still mainly in bugfix territory here. A couple changes have been introduced to how the app handles address input, letting you using a longer address or a PO Box when setting up a prepaid card. Reward cards linked to the app should now see improvements with keeping their data synced-up. Most of us struggle to find one smartphone on which we can run Wallet, but for those of you with multiple NFC-capable phones, this release will better handle sharing your account on more than one handset.

Google Authenticator, letting your use your phone to securely log in to your Google account on public terminals, gets some unspecified bug fixes, but seeing as the whole point of this app is security, we'd treat this release with a little more seriousness than your standard bugfix update. To that end, Google+ also gets some minor, unspecified bug fixes, along with improvements to app stability.

All three Google apps are currently available in the Android Market.

06:14 by Robert dawne · 0

Google Updates Chrome for Android, Brings Speed Improvements

The newly-released Chrome for Android is already a fast, capable browser, even if it is technically still a beta release. After launching earlier this month, the browser now finds itself on the receiving end of a new update, but Google hasn't published any changelog to accompany it. Just what's new in the latest version of Chrome?

Probably the most noticeable change to occur in this update has to do with browser speed and responsiveness. The web-browsing experience should altogether feel a bit smoother, and benchmarks confirm the improvement.

Chrome should also start demonstrating smarter behavior when parsing links. Instead of trying to do everything in-browser, the browser is now better about giving you the opportunity to open links through associated apps. It's supposedly not quite all the way there yet, but it's an improvement over the initial release.

Not all the news surrounding this update has been positive. A number of users are turning to Android Market reviews to voice their frustration with the updated Chrome now trying to tell them that they're not running a supported version of Android, despite being on Ice Cream Sandwich. The problem may be related to custom ROMs like CyanogenMod 9, so if you're running such software, you may wish to hold off on updating Chrome until Google gets this glitch fixed.

13:29 by Robert dawne · 0

Google to Launch TV Service

Google is looking to get into the paid TV business.
The company filed an application last week to provide video service to residents of Kansas City, Mo., according to The Wall Street Journal. If approved, the service could launch as soon as a month from now, according to the article, which cites a “media executive currently involved in negotiations to license channels to the service.” Offerings in the video package would include live TV as well as on-demand and online access to TV channels, according to the report, which was based on an earlier article by The New York Post.
The source told the WSJ that Google plans to look beyond the Kansas City market and into other areas where Verizon’s Fiber Optic Services (FIOS). Controlling the pipes to TV subscribers would offer Google a new revenue stream.
Reps from Google could not be reached for comment.
The Kansas City application coincides with another request to put a satellite antenna farm near the company’s data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. That addition could allow Google to receive movies and TV shows that could be bundled with a new Internet service in Kansas City that promises to be up to 100 times faster than the average Internet connection.
Google chose Kansas City for its ultra-fast service last March. Kansas City, Mo., and Kansas City, Kan., beat out about 1,000 other municipalities for that honor. That fiber-optic-based Internet service is expected to go live there this summer.
This isn’t the first time that Google’s ambitious plans for TV service have been exposed. The Wall Street Journal also reported in November that Google was in talks with Disney, Time Warner and Discovery Communications about providing content for its fiber-optic based video service in those cities.

07:07 by Robert dawne · 0

HTC Sensation XE, Sensation Ice Cream Sandwich ROMs Leak

When HTC officially announced the white HTC Sensation at the beginning of this month the company said the phone will be available in Europe on March 1 running Android Ice Cream Sandwich out-of-the-box. The announcement also contained information about the ICS update for all European Sensation models to arrive soon.

On that note, two "release candidate" Ice Cream Sandwich ROMs have been recently leaked for the HTC Sensation XE and the HTC Sensation. This means that HTC is working hard to roll-out the official updates soon but it also means that those techy among you who understand the risks can take the leaked ROMs for a spin. RC means it's close to the final version but there might be some bugs (though you know that already). Check out the source link below to grab them (seem to be European versions) only if you know what you're doing and acknowledge the risks.

06:47 by Robert dawne · 0

ISA 2012: Facebook, Apple, Google – Which Platforms Hold the Most Opportunity in 2012?

Today at the Inside Social Apps Conference 2012 in San Francisco, game developers discussed which platforms hold the most promise in 2012.
Kevin Chou, CEO and co-founder of Kabam felt that the popular Facebook platform has become more challenging because ad prices have gone up 18 percent and because Facebook’s payments platform, Facebook Credits, charges a 30 percent revenue share. “We thought that conversions would go up and be around 15 or 20 percent, but it turned out to be around 5 to 10 percent, meaning that we’re taking a 20 percent net tax,” he said.
Jens Begemann, founder and CEO of Wooga has seen his user base grow to 40 million monthly average users, which is three times as many as the company had a year ago. The European game developer recently launched “Diamond Dash” and “Magic Land” on Facebook, and has been very happy with overall growth on the platform.
Bengemann also noted that the performance-based model is better than having to pay development costs upfront. Besides, no one seems to complain about Apple’s iOS taking 30 percent of the proceeds. ”It’s really Apples to Apples,” he quipped.
Added Anil Dharni, co-founder of Funzio, ”We have seen amazing uptake on the iPad.” Apple has an advantage over Android because of the user experience on the iPad tablet. “We are hoping Google figures out the tablet soon,” he said.
But John Spinale, the senior vice president of social games at Disney, has seen “incredible revenue growth on Android,” he said. Although the current focus is on Facebook and Apple’s iOS platform, the company is placing strategic bets on Android and Google+. ”Android is a little bit unwieldy and has more overhead,” he said, “but the revenue is meaningful enough that it’s worth the pain of doing.”

14:41 by Robert dawne · 0

The Daily Hits 1st Birthday, Reaches 100,000 Paid Subscribers on iPad. What’s Next?

The Daily, the News Corp publication that launched exclusively on the iPad one year ago Thursday, is setting its sites beyond tablets in 2012.
The publication has amassed more than 100,000 paid subscribers on the iPad, making it the third top-grossing iPad app in the iTunes Store last year. Of those 100,000, about half pay The Daily‘s $0.99 per week subscription fee, and the other half are annual ($39.99 per year) subscribers, according to publisher Greg Clayman.
Earlier this month, The Daily launched its first Android edition for Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablets. Now the digital newspaper is gearing up to release versions for iPhone and Android smartphones “in the next month or two,” says Clayman, thereby making its content available to the millions of consumers who own smartphones but not tablets. It will also allow existing subscribers to more easily access The Daily‘s updates throughout the day.
We spoke to Clayman about The Daily‘s first year and what lies ahead for 2012. An edited transcript of our phone interview can be found below.

Q&A With Greg Clayman, Publisher of The Daily

Greg Clayman addresses attendees at Mashable‘s 2011 Connect conference in Orlando.

 n some senses, The Daily‘s exclusive launch on the iPad was a progressive embrace of new technology — one that many thought was ahead of its time. Then again, most publications have been laboring to bring their content to as many devices, screens and platforms as possible, whereas The Daily limited itself by being available only on one.

We were very specific about designing a native daily news experience for a tablet. As we start to look at smartphones, we’re having to rethink what a daily news consumption experience should be like on that device. We’re known for very visual graphics, stunning photography and ease of use, which is difficult to translate to iPhone.
Will you ever have a website?
We’ve spent a lot of time looking at The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal and their paywalls, as well as sites without paywalls like The Huffington Post, to determine the best business model. On the iPad, we know what the model is. Apple has a great subscription service and an awesome thing called Newsstand, and that’s how we monetize. One click and you pay for it, very straightforward. On the web there’s a series of different models, and there’s issues about what kinds of paywalls work, and what content you put in front and behind a paywall, and whether it’s metered or usage-based. These are all questions that people are still debating across the industry. We’re keeping an eye on all of those.
So is it fair to say that you’re having discussions about building a website, but that nothing is in production?
That’s about right. I’d say we’re focused on the mobile space and mobile users.
Earlier this month you launched your first edition for Android tablets. What have been the challenges of formatting for a new operating system?
There are two challenges. One is the sort of format layout, look, feel. The second is the coding. On the layout side, what we do on the iPad and what we do on the Android tablet looks almost exactly the same. There is some difficulty with Android in terms of navigation — it has a built-in back button and contextual menu, for instance — which you can design for but don’t need to. What is very different is underlying code. The beauty of iOS is that if you build one tablet app, one iPhone app, and it works across all the devices instantly. Challenge we all face with Android is that there are different iterations of the operating systems — Gingerbread, Ice Cream Sandwich, etc. — and we need to develop slightly different iterations for each handsets. That’s why, when you develop for Android, people talking about how it’s a longer process.
How did you have to adjust the workflow for publishing on two tablet OSes instead of one?
On the backend, we had to build into our CMS the ability to publish simultaneously on multiple different platform types. Now, when we create a story or article in CMS, it automatically publishes to both the Android and the iOS tablet. On the front end, we had to add a level of QA. If you’re reviewing a song, for instance, you have to make sure it links to the iTunes Store on the iPad and the Google store on an Android. Before we hit publish every night and throughout the day, editors are actually looking at [stories] across the various tablets we publish to, and tweaking if necessary on the fly.
Are you thinking about an app for Windows Phone 7?
It’s something we do talk about. I really like the OS; it’s really, really cool. We want to be wherever our readers are. There are more people using Android and iPhones than Windows phones, but as the Windows Phone platform gains more traction in the market, I expect we’ll end up there too.
Why keep building apps? Why not just build for the mobile web?
One of the challenges of mobile app development and mobile publishing overall is that every time there is a new upgrade to an operating system — every time Android comes out with a new OS, or Apple releases an update to iOS 5, essentially — you need to make sure your code is optimized for the OS that it’s running. It’s hard enough when you’re an app. When you’re an app and a publishing platform, you have to make sure your app is optimized and that your backend publishing system continues to be upgraded so that everything keeps moving. That’s the app world. On the web, you design a website, make sure you’re compatible with browsers, and you’re good. For the most part that’s a simpler process. When will we need apps anymore? When will HTML5 power every game and every media type, and be heart of every app? I am very excited about that. It’s just not here yet. There’s so much more you can do with native code in terms of functionality and fluidity right now, although HTML5 is getting better every day.
You spoke about your strengths earlier — about having great design and stunning photography. Yet few think of The Daily as a breaking news publication, as a source for scoops. I think of you as a highly visual morning news aggregator. Is that what you want your journalism to be known for?
From a journalistic standpoint, we did a good job in our first year. Paula Deen, the woman who does all the high fat cooking and is one of the bestselling chef personalities, well it turns out she’d given herself diabetes, and we broke that. That became a national story. When Alec Baldwin wanted to run for mayor of New York, we broke that. We released an exclusive video of Miley Cyrus that got onto Entertainment Tonight. We have a team of journalists who continue to break stories and write original content. You can’t overestimate the importance of that. I use Pulse and other aggregators — Flipboard, Zite, News.me, etc. — all the time. That game is about who can make the best experience for aggregating original content. But we’re in the category of creating original content.
What have you learned about tablet advertising?
Sometimes the really simple ads are the ones that get a lot of great response. That being said, the tablet affords advertisers a tremendous amount of creativity, and we’ve seen some really great ads. We’re helping advertisers understand how people are interacting with the ads. Are readers holding the tablets vertically or horizontally? Where do they click on the page? What kinds of interactivity are tablets driving? We share every single piece of data we can.
How do you get demographic information when Apple doesn’t share that with you?
A couple of different ways. One is that we do surveys, which people love to respond to. The second is when you subscribe to The Daily Apple provides the opportunity to share your data with the publisher. Once someone has opted in to that, you hand over your zip code and email address. We then use Nielsen’s geography data to determine their demographics.
Is profitability in sight?
Sure. Over the next couple of years. From what I’ve seen, the average time it takes for a new magazine publication to get profitable is five to seven years. We’re on track to be ahead of that, which is great. When you calculate magazine profitability, you have to take into account the rising costs of paper and ink. We don’t have any of those costs. We’re in a very good place.
How else would you characterize your evolution over the last year?
A year ago we didn’t have readers yet, we were’t in the market and we didn’t have firsthand experience on the platform yet. It’s very different when 20 people are playing in a lab, versus thousands of people who are using [your product] constantly and giving you feedback. A year ago it was about launching, about getting it into the market quickly, and now it’s about listening and understanding how people use it, what do they want more or less of, where they are going and where the are platforms going. We now have a fully baked, fully functional app CMS, and a large, engaged readership. A year ago we were asking how to build the boat. Now it’s about understanding the best way to steer the boat.
 Mashable

07:43 by Robert dawne · 0