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Time, Hearst, and Condé Nast team up for iTunes-like digital magazine service

The deal is helmed by Time executive vice president John Squires, and if it proceeds, it will be one of the biggest alliances in print media history.

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Computing | by Samuel Axon | Tue Nov 24, 2009 6:28PM | 1 comment

The New York Observer reports that Time Magazine executive vice president John Squires is leading an alliance of megapublishers Time, Hearst, and Condé Nast to build a digital distribution platform for magazines that will resemble iTunes in scope and style. The digital magazines would be usable on a wide variety of devices from laptops to cell phones and beyond.

This isn't the first we've heard that Time was working on this, but the partnership between those three companies ups the ante. Together, they control over 50 magazines including The New Yorker, Wired, and of course Time. If this plan goes through, it will be one of the biggest deals in print media history.

Right now the players are not only trying to figure out how best to distribute the content, but how to reinvent the magazine to make it consumable on any device under the sun and moon.

This story around the web:

Trusted sources:
external link Techmeme: Time Inc.'s Squires Assembles Team… [techmeme.com]
external link Time Inc.'s Squires Assembles Team of… [observer.com]
external link Sony Planning Its Own iTunes — With A… [Coated]
external link Rival Magazine Publishers Plan to Launch… [ReadWriteWeb]
external link Time, Conde, Hearst to Create an "iTunes for… [business.theatlantic.com]
external link The Superfriends of Publishing Have a Grand… [Gizmodo]
external link Hearst, Time, Conde iTunes For Magazines Only… [Alley Insider]
external link Old World Publishers Unite For New Media… [theiphoneblog.com]
external link Magazine Publishers Teaming Up for Digital… [macrumors.com]
external link Magazine publishers joining together for… [The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)]
external link AppleInsider | Rival publishers rumored to… [appleinsider.com]
external link Ebooks: iMagz Coming? | Mobility Site [mobilitysite.com]
external link Magazine publishers said to be 'very close'… [engadget.com]
external link Major publishers join forces to prep… [9to5mac.com]
external link Hearst, Time Inc, Condé Nast Digital… [techstartups.com]
external link Publishers closer to 'iTunes for magazines' |… [electronista.com]
external link Time Inc. Close To Magazine JV With Rival… [paidContent.org]
external link Magazine app store for mobiles prepped [Electricpig.co.uk]

Latest Tweets about this story:

  • MoodyPlaylist - There is no justification for someone being this boring. None. I feel like Patty Hearst in her time-out closet.
  • stephfierman - Condé Nast, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc. and Wenner Media partnering on magazine marketing campaign; Y&R handling creative http://ow.ly/14zTl
  • VrijeSchrijvers - Rival magazine publishers join forces to promote medium (via @DutchessAbroad) Condé Nast, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc. and Wenner Media
  • alanmredmond - Reading: "Chris Anderson, Will Hearst: The Long Time Tail - The Long Now"( http://twitthis.com/2duoma )
  • gkagarise - Had a great time with Randy & Lisa. Hit 3 wineries in the Dry Creek Valley region of Sonoma County:Wilson, Pedroncelli and Truett & Hearst!!
  • ZenithColor - RT @GGJenna: Conde, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc, Wenner collab on marketing campaign 4 mags launching in April http://bit.ly/93q2wy (via @iwantmedia)
  • shaunbaron - RT @iwantmedia: Conde Nast, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc, Wenner collaborate on marketing campaign touting magazines, launching in April http://bit.ly/93q2wy
  • McConnellDesign - Conde Nast, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc. and Wenner Media join forces to promote industry http://tr.im/MXWn
  • GGJenna - Conde, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc, Wenner collab on marketing campaign 4 mags launching in April http://bit.ly/93q2wy (via @iwantmedia)
  • MichelleRakos - RT @laurenpavlick: Condé, Hearst, Meredith, Time Inc & Wenner Media funding marketing campaign to promote the magazine industry as one http://bit.ly/cXvqtx

Get more information on topics relating to this story:


Related company news:
Hearst, Apple, Time Inc., Condé Nast
Related devices and services:
Apple iTunes

Comments (1)

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Elle Kasey external link (7:07 PM on Mon Nov 30, 2009)

It is a step well-overdue. If I could leaf through my magazines on the web in anything resembling the real thing, I would be the first to make the move. But I suspect the move online will mean more restricted content, less of it, pushing the envelope on ads beyond what websites do (I can see "blow in cards" falling out of my computer.) They'll want proprietary everything. Register and pay out the wazoo. I also suspect something I can do now - capture a recipe and import it into my recipe software fairly easily will become a tedious task.

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Anonymous (11:26 AM on Tue Feb 9, 2010)

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