New services bring publishers worldwide shipping, additional binding
options, digital magazine application
HP today announced new services for its
MagCloud
print-on-demand
publishing platform, offering publishers more opportunities to deliver
their
ideas, stories and images into readers’ hands.
New features such as worldwide shipping, additional binding options
and a
digital magazine iPad application enable publishers to reach an even
broader
audience.
Conceived in HP Labs,
the company’s central research arm, MagCloud extends the digital
revolution to
the publishing industry by delivering a web-based marketplace where
magazine
publishers can affordably turn their targeted content into print and
digital
magazine formats. New MagCloud features include:
- MagCloud magazine store and reader application for iPad –
Available at no additional charge through the
App
Store,
the MagCloud iPad app allows readers to download a digital copy of the
magazine
onto their iPad device, with the option to purchase printed copies
directly from
their iPad. Now any publisher – from traditional to niche magazines –
can offer
content in both digital and print magazine formats using MagCloud as a
common
platform. - Worldwide shipping – With extended shipping offerings,
readers
worldwide can now order single issues of the magazines available through
MagCloud. - Perfect binding – MagCloud now offers publishers the option
for
perfect-bound magazines, which provides a more professional look and
accommodates a much higher page count – more than 300 pages.
Enabling new business models
The MagCloud publishing community consists of all varieties of
publishers –
from traditional media companies leveraging MagCloud to turn existing
content
libraries into targeted and special edition issues to independent
publishers and
businesses promoting highly targeted content and services.
Leveraging HP’s extensive print service provider network utilizing
HP Indigo print technology, MagCloud is a print-on-demand platform
that
requires no upfront preproduction costs or minimum print runs. This
makes it
affordable and convenient for first-time and commercial publishers
alike.
The appetite for targeted magazine content is growing. More magazines
are
introduced every week on MagCloud than were launched through traditional
magazine publishing channels during all of 2009. The
service also
has enabled a new breed of “pop up” magazines created by ad-hoc and
widely
distributed groups of professionals.
Spearheading this new movement in collaborative, real-time
magazine
publishing are magazines such as
Strange
Light,
Onè Respe and
Linchpin,
all of which use new digital media tools and content crowd sourcing to
overcome
traditional media barriers.
Supporting quotes
“MagCloud has enabled thousands of magazine publishers to sell
hundreds of
thousands of magazine issues, generating millions of pages of new
content. These
new MagCloud services unlock an even greater opportunity for growth,
providing
readers the freedom to consume the targeted content they want in the
format they
want, whether that be print or digital.”
