Organic Tuesday
unveiled a social media-driven publication for
the iPad, the first app released by a new development team at the agency focused( on building applications on emerging platforms and testing new technologies. The group will be led by Organic VP of
Technology Todd Drake and Chief Creative Officer Conor Brady. As part of the initiative, all Organic employees will given iPads and will serve as test users for the newly introduced
BroadFeed app and other iPad apps.
The 99-cent BroadFeed app delivers content shared on Twitter in a newspaper format,
complete with headlines, teasers and photos. Here's how it works according to the App Store description: "You tell the app what sources to follow, either by signing in to your Twitter feed or browsing
the built-in directory. Then BroadFeed pulls in and prioritizes the articles and pictures being shared." Something like a Twitter client on steroids. What separates BroadFeed from other "social
magazine" iPad apps is is its Digg-like "social-weighting" system that prioritizes placement of content based on how much a link is shared.
The idea is to automate the editorial process of
figuring out which stories should go on the front page of a newspaper. The app doesn't include ads, but Organic has embedded measurement technologies within BroadFeed to get a better
understanding of how consumers are interacting with it. Proceeds from the sales of BroadFeed will be donated to charities, including the American Red Cross (www.redcross.org), which
is driving disaster relief efforts on behalf of those affected by the Japan earthquake and tsunami.