Apple is said to be working on a digital newsstand for the iPad, similar to the iBook store, but separate from its App Store, where iPad versions of some newspapers can already be downloaded. By making it easier and cheaper to create digital versions of their magazines and newspapers, Apple is trying to attract publishers to a new storefront.
Article: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-09-17/apple-said-to-plan-online-newsstand-with-publishers.html
As it was mentioned earlier in this blog, a big question is whether newspapers have a choice. One of the main points of the negotiations is whether Apple with collect 30% of sales like it does for music on iTunes. But another important point is Apple's willingness to share subscriber data with the publishers.
Publishers want to avoid repeating the Amazon Kindle situation, where Amazon owns the customer information and doesn't share it with publishers. The article points out that without that data, "it would be difficult for a publisher to bundle print and digital subscriptions." But subscription and bundling aside, it may also be possible that by keeping that data private, the platforms could also hinder the development of content itself, since publishers won't be able to interpret usage patterns to create more value for their audience.
However, going back to what we discussed in class about competition vs cooperation, publishers could leverage power by reaching an agreement with Google's Android OS for other tablet PCs. So they might have a choice after all.
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