Slash LaneThe publication announced Thursday that it will remove its current application from the App Store, and replace it with a new ">subscription-based app that will cost £2.99 for six months and £3.99 for 12 months. The Guardian will also have an ad-supported version released in the U.S. for free.
Jonathon Moore, the mobile product manager for The Guardian, did not indicate that the subscription plans will be a part of Apple's rumored iOS update for the iPhone. But the timing does coincide with rumors of a media event scheduled for Dec. 9 or soon after to announce a subscription billing option for applications.
"We'll be launching the new app globally for the first time and although we can't confirm exactly when it will be available, we're working towards a pre-Christmas release," Moore wrote. He also confirmed that the publication is working on an iPad application.
One rumor has suggested that Apple plans to release iOS 4.3, a new update for its mobile operating system that powers the iPhone and iPad, in December. That update will allegedly include the ability to have recurring app subscriptions through an iTunes account.
Apple is said to have worked closely with News Corp to create a new tablet-only newspaper called The Daily, expected to launch in a matter of weeks. The publication, which will not have an online or print edition, reportedly has 100 journalists working from the 26th floor of the News Corp offices in New York.
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14 Comments
"'Guardian' reveals iOS app subscriptions ahead of expected Apple event"
Well! No soup for THEM!
Just great, the app I recently purchased is soon to be discontinued! Marvellous.
I'd pay for Guardian. Especially $8 per year.
Just great, the app I recently purchased is soon to be discontinued! Marvellous.
To be fair, the newspaper itself is £1 a day, to put it in to perspective. You were charged a day or two's editions for something that will work for quite some time. And no ads.
I understand the current app will continue to work but the content will be limited. The Guardian is still entirely free on their website and they have a pretty good mobile site.
The Guardian (or "Grauniad" as it's affectionately known in the UK) is the only national UK newspaper not owned by a proprietor or shareholders, but by a trust. It has publicly stated on several occasions that it will always remain free online, but as its print circulation declines it needs to find new ways to fund that.
Recent columns in the paper have been anti- the rumoured Apple/Murdoch tie-up, saying it won't save newspapers so they're giving mixed messages a bit with this. Or maybe not - it's cheap enough that it's not aimed at making a profit, expensive enough that it will bring revenue.
The subscription price is a steal compared with other newspaper apps, and compared with the cost of the actual paper (£1.00, much more for the Sunday "Observer"). But I can't see how they'll earn much from it unless it carries ads...
Anyway, good news but not great. The current iPhone app is good, but it lacks an iPad version which this will rectify.