The anticipated release of the forthcoming Apple tablet has left no shortage of tech-savvy shoppers excited for what could prove to be the hottest release in consumer electronics this year. Yet it could be the executives within the publishing world who are most eagerly awaiting the tablet’s big reveal.
The largest newspaper and book publishing businesses in existence have struggled in recent years and watched as advertising dollars slipped away as the dawn of the digital age set in. But just as the rapidly expanding popularly of electronic reading platforms brings added revenue to the few makers of the most popular e-readers, the providers of digital content are now angling for a fair piece of the pie they unwittingly helped create in the first place.
The New York Times, in fact, could be the first major media outlet to overtly aim to capitalize on the launch of the tablet by laying the groundwork for a paid content program – the formal announcement of which is imminent.
As the prospect of free mobile news content from the NY Times quickly fades away, the masses have not yet expressed a profound interest or willingness to cough up for a paid premium content package. It may just take the tablet or the booming popularity of e-readers to change some minds.
Dubbed “a natural-born book reader,” the tablet is believed to be built to compete with Amazon, Sony, and Barnes & Noble. As a result, the Apple Tablet could very well spark an appetite for content that will bode favorably for publications that will be thrilled to piggyback on Apple’s platform and welcome the revenue streams made possible by such an arrangement.
Although the term “game changer” is frequently invoked when prospective Apple products are hyped, mobile marketers are primed and ready to jump on the inherent opportunities that could result from a resurgence in mobile news content popularity and an entirely new platform that can be used to reach new audiences and the key demographics highly sought after by advertisers.
Apple is expected to unveil the tablet at their January 27th event at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater in San Francisco.
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