Apple launches new iPad app subscription service for publishers
Apple has rolled out its new subscription service for the iPad, first seen in action with the launch of News Corp's app The Daily, to all other newspaper and magazine publishers.
The system will allow publishers to set their own price and the length of recurring payment plans for apps which can be viewed on iPads, iPhones and Touch devices.
The model will see Apple keep 30% of subscription revenue, which is sold via Apple. However, publishers will keep 100% of revenue for renewals and subscriptions sold through their own channels.
Up until now media owners have had to sell each edition of their newspaper or magazine individually through Apple.
However, The Daily was the first to break the mould. It charges 99 cents a week for the title, which is only available in the US. The Daily is an ambitious project. With start-up costs said to be around $30m and over 100 staff it will need over 600,000 subscriptions to break even.
Despite being on a medical leave of absence Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, said in a statement "Our philosophy is simple – when Apple brings a new subscriber to the app, Apple earns a 30% share; when the publisher brings an existing or new subscriber to the app, the publisher keeps 100% and Apple earns nothing.
"All we require is that, if a publisher is making a subscription offer outside of the app, the same – or better – offer be made inside the app, so that customers can easily subscribe with one click right in the app.
"We believe that this innovative subscription service will provide publishers with a brand new opportunity to expand digital access to their content on to the iPad, iPod touch and iPhone, delighting both new and existing subscribers."
The Apple system will process subscribers payments and then take the 30% cut. Readers will then be able to choose how much of their personal information they will share with the publisher.
This is a key point because at one stage Apple were reluctant to hand over any such data. But because this information is seen as the true value of any subscription database it is unlikely mainstream publishers would have been attracted to the Apple offering if the company had stuck to its guns of this front.