great article, thanks for posting it !
interesting figure here :
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the cost of paper, printing and delivery, which can account for as much as 50% of the cost of putting out a periodical.
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that seems to confirm the recent article claiming that the New York Times could actually save money by giving away kindles to its subscribers...
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Given the evolving state of the technology, the Hearst reader is likely to debut in black and white and later transition to high-resolution color with the option for video as those displays, now in testing phases, get commercialized. Downloading content from participating newspapers and magazines will occur wirelessly. For durability, the device is likely to have a flexible core, perhaps even foldable, rather than the brittle glass substrates used in readers on the market today.
What Hearst and its partners plan to do is sell the e-readers to publishers and to take a cut of the revenue derived from selling magazines and newspapers on these devices. The company will, however, leave it to the publishers to develop their own branding and payment models. "That's something you will never see Amazon do," someone familiar with the Hearst project said. "They aren't going to give up control of the devices."
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this sounds like a very exciting plan, and a perfect use for these devices. i'll definitely be keeping a close eye on it. it will be really interesting to see where the industry will take it.