Could "Magazine Everywhere" be next? Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes hinted he wants to make tablet-computer subscriptions for the company's magazines available to people who already subscribe to the
print versions of the company's titles, which include
Time, People, Sports Illustrated, Real Simple. The key, he says, is to get subscribers to enjoy TW's products over all broadband devices,
reports
The Wall Street Journal.
For magazines, this is a novel idea. A
handful of print publications -- including The Wall Street Journal -- offer subscriptions to their iPad versions, but only as an option separate from subscriptions to their print editions --
and for an additional cost. Bewkes is describing a new business model to tie tablet-computer content to print subscriptions.
However, Apple did not allow the Sports Illustrated app
to include a subscription feature. The reasons for Apple's reluctance are not entirely clear, although the theories are ones that have been around for some time: Apple may be concerned over subscriber
information being held by the publishers rather than Apple itself, and the company may be working to retain control over and profits from magazine sales by pushing downloads through the App Store
rather than through publishers, suggests MacRumors.
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