• Nieman Journalism Lab, Wednesday, June 10, 2009 9:30 AM

Is there anything that smartphones can't do? In addition to delivering local TV in your pocket, they also could be the future of newspapers, say some industry experts. E-readers will be second place, at best, according to research by Nieman Lab.

Statistics tell the story. By the end of last year, the U.S. had 270.3 million wireless subscribers, 87% of the entire population. The New York Times in April served up 60 million mobile views, twice the level of April 2008. Now, with the availability of apps, smartphones have been turned into minicomputers that can easily deliver news. The race between smartphones and e-readers is over because phones can let you do 100 things besides reading black-and-white print.

But the phone screen is small. One implication is that mobile newspaper readers may be less inclined to search and surf for news, and be more inclined to let the news come to them, by whatever means. News publishers will need to create apps that deliver custom-tailored news to fit individual preferences.

Read the whole story at Nieman Journalism Lab »