Guardian's Rusbridger: 'iPad could produce significant revenue streams'

Posted by Maria Conde on February 9, 2010 at 3:09 PM

Guardian editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger told Reuters that "if we get the right functionality and design," the iPad could "produce interesting, significant revenue streams," according to PaidContent.

Because developing an application for the iPad will not require any different skills from the ones required to launch an iPhone app, news publishers that have had success with iPhone apps, are now looking to cash in on the iPad.

Guardian met much success with its paid-for iPhone app that debuted last December. By January, the £2.49 app had been downloaded 69,000 times. At that rate, income from the app alone could reach almost £2 million a year.

Rusbridger told Reuters that the performance of Guardian's iPhone app is "a signal that people are prepared to pay on mobile" and that the iPad, accompanied by the right design, could bring in much revenue as well.

He added, "if we can make people pay on mobile, then we should - what I'm against is a universal paywall that puts all your content behind."

A couple of weeks ago, Rusbridger ruled out erecting a universal paywall around Guardian's website. However, Guardian Media Group Carolyn McCall said to the Financial Times that no universal paywall did not mean specialist content on the website could not be charged for.

Rusbridger's opinion sharply contrasts statements by other media leaders, like News Corp's Rupert Murdoch, who has recently announced his company is close to implementing paywall models for all its newspapers, including the Times and News of the World.

Part of the newspaper's industry's hope is that the iPad will bring in more revenue as users pay for access to newspapers on their deluxe tablets. Evidence - like the success of the iTunes music store and Guardian's paid-for app - suggests that people are willing to pay for content that is delivered to a mobile device. But, if we have the iPhone on one side, and the Macbook on the other, and people are willing to pay for content that is delivered to their iPhones, but not on their Macbooks, where will the middle ground iPad figure in this picture?