• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, September 7, 2011

Responding to surging public interest in tablet-style computers and e-readers, and the associated wave of digital editions of magazines, magazine research company Affinity has partnered with Zinio, a digital magazine publisher and virtual newsstand, to conduct research on the evolving digital magazine marketplace.

Carried out under the aegis of Affinity's syndicated VISTA Digital Service, the research will investigate readership and time spent across different digital platforms, among other key indicators for the vitality of digital magazines.

The partnership will increase the number of Zinio issues tracked by Affinity's digital research division, which measures the effectiveness and interactivity of magazine ads delivered via computers, iPads and other mobile devices.

This includes a large proportion of digital ads placed across different Zinio magazine editions published using Zinio's "Unity" reading platform. VISTA Digital will also measure Zinio's various nontraditional, digital-only publications, beginning with Zinio's Explore, which gives readers access to editorial highlights from other Zinio magazines, accompanied by sponsored advertiser messaging.

The research partnership will produce a series of reports on the transforming digital publishing and advertising landscape, titled "The Digital Magazine Space... from A to Z."

The VISTA Digital service, unveiled by Affinity in February, scores digital advertising based on its effectiveness, incorporating factors like recall, brand association and actions taken by readers after seeing particular ads, including a battery of questions about engagement.

It covers a variety of digital platforms, including Web sites, smartphones, e-readers, social networks, PC tablet computers and Apple's iPad.

Affinity is not the only company investigating digital magazine readership. In July, Condé Nast and Adobe unveiled a joint effort to define and deliver a new set of audience metrics for publishers and advertisers. It is being touted as (potentially) a new standard offering insights into distribution of digital editions, levels of exposure within those editions and audience engagement.

GfK MRI is also measuring cross-platform magazine readership -- including digital platforms like Web sites, digital editions received via email, smartphone apps, e-readers and tablets -- through new questions added to its in-person, in-home surveys of adults ages 18 and older.