The Daily Telegraph launched today an updated version of its iPad app, Financial Times reported. The new edition of The Telegraph for the iPad can be downloaded for a one-off fee of £1.19 or as part of a monthly subscription, priced at £9.99. The previous version of the app, launched last September, was free.

The app's new features include interactive crosswords, picture galleries and a seven-day archive of the paper's cartoons. Also added is the possibility to increase text size by "pinching", a 30-day archive of back issues and a night-reading mode.

The launch follows yesterday's news concerning Apple's deal with Hearst Corp, which saw the iPad manufacturer take a more flexible stance than before as regards its App Store terms. Financial Times's Tech Hub reported that Edward Roussel, The Telegraph's digital editor, described Apple as "co-operative and helpful" during the development of the app.

The Telegraph was allowed to make its app free for existing print subscribers, for example. Moreover, it seems that Apple is loosening its tight grip on customer data. The Guardian reported that new iPad subscribers to The Telegraph are asked to share their personal data with the newspaper in exchange for an additional seven-day period to the subscription.

Many publishers have criticised Apple's policy of taking a 30 per cent cut of all App Store subscriptions. Roussel, however, saw this as a reasonable compensation for the user-friendly distribution and payment method Apple has created, comparing it to the costs that print publishing entails.

The Telegraph's iPad app imitates the newspaper's print cycle: after the content is downloaded onto the device's memory (new issues are downloadable at 5:00 UK time), it is fully accessible anywhere, except for video, which requires an Internet connection. The Guardian reported that The Telegraph is understood to be developing a new version of its iPhone app as well, but no information of its features is currently available.

The Telegraph's move to make its iPad app paid-for could pave way for a more comprehensive scheme to charge for its digital services, as the newspaper is rumoured to start charging for its website content later this year.

Sources: Financial Times (1), (2), The Guardian (1), (2)