One of the best iPhone apps out there is the ABC’s app – it offers all the latest news, videos and podcasts for free. So why would anyone want to pay $2.50 a month for Fairfax content on the iPhone?
There’s an iPhone app for each of Fairfax’s major newspapers, including the SMH, The Age, WA Today and the Brisbane Times. Each app includes content from each of the paper’s websites, but with the ability to customise exactly what content you want to read.
But as Gus over at Lifehacker points out, there’s actually very little difference between the app and using your Safari browser, except for the $2.50 monthly fee. Inevitably, I’m sure Fairfax will start restricting access to content via the browser, but in the meantime, there’s nothing special on offer from the app. Especially given early reviews and reports that the app is slow and buggy.
[iTunes]
matt
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 1:50 PMlol.
I mean, yes… ABC stuff will always have the advantage of being funded by the gov (by which I mean, US).
so it will be interesting to see if others can compete with direct fees, not the tried and true advertising model.
Simon Potts
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 1:55 PMI wonder if they will restrict access to ALL browsers or just safari mobile.
And if they just target safari mobile then what is to stop us Atomic Web users from setting the browser identifier to Firefox, or IE or desktop Safari?
I can’t see this working without them severally crippling their current online presence.
Simon Reidy
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 2:25 PMI hate these windowed html apps, that just render the mobile version of a website in a window and add a couple of buttons. As you say why would anyone buy such a piece of crap?
Ed
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 2:43 PMThis is the beginning of a trend we are going to see from the major newspaper companies, and quite frankly it is one which is needed.
Real news requires real journalists, which requires people being journalists as a career, which requires them being paid for their work.
If we continue to have every news article for free, they will slowly start to disappear, in place of blogs, twitter posts, and the like. Hardly reliable sources of facts.
Daniel Weaver-Koenigs
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 10:38 PMSorry, I thought this was about the tabloid media company Fairfax? Not real news by real journalists?
Jay
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 2:53 PMGive the guys a break. They hired a group of cheap programmers who they tried to teach and now want to recover their money. Being a big company does not mean a quality product.
Maybe next time, they might hire some professionals instead of dabblers that learn and leave.
:)
Labrat
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 4:03 PMit will fail.
ABC will win. Hands down.
Fairfax might have to pay journos, but seriously, how many do they need when a good deal of their “news” is syndicated. Syndicated news can be grabbed from anywhere on the net, for free.
Sergei Nester
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 5:12 PMABC costs taxpayers 8 cents a day – which equals $2.40 a month……about what fairfax are charging. I find the iPAD version of the Australian much more coffetable friendly than reading the web version – so to me 2.49 is very reasonbable to have the content formatted for IPAD. The only thing that peeves me with the Australian e-paper is that the inserts are not included – the Australian Magazine and the other specials.
MDolley
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 at 7:25 PMThe government charges $2.40 per month for a bunch of television channels, news and websites. So instead of making use of that resource which you HAVE to pay for, Fairfax thinks you should give them the same amount AS WELL?