Digital edition
Encyclopedia
A digital edition is an online magazine
or online newspaper
delivered in electronic form which is formatted identically to the print version. Digital editions are often called digital facsimiles to underline the likeness to the print version. Digital editions have the benefit of reduced cost to the publisher and reader by avoiding the time and expense to print and deliver like a paper edition. This format is considered more environmentally friendly due to the reduction of paper and energy use. These editions also often feature interactive elements such as hyperlink
s both within the publication itself and to other internet resources, searching and bookmarking, and can also incorporate multimedia such as video or animation to enhance articles themselves or for advertisements. Some delivery methods also include animation and sound effects replicating page turning to further enhance the experience of their print counterparts.Traditionally, magazine publishers have relied on two revenue sources: selling ads and selling magazines. Additionally some publishers are using other electronic publication methods such as RSS
to reach out to readers and inform them when new digital editions are available.
Current technologies are generally either reader-based, requiring download of an application and subsequent download of each edition, or browser
-based, requiring no application download (such as Adobe Acrobat
) and is often Flash-based. Mygazines
and Nxtbook Media
are among the main technology providers of web-based digital editions. Some application-based readers allow readers to access editions while not connected to the internet. Dedicated hardware such as the Amazon Kindle
and the iPad
is also available for reading digital editions of select books, popular national magazines such as Relevant
, TIME
, Atlantic Monthly, and Forbes
and popular national newspapers such as the New York Times
, Wall Street Journal
, and Washington Post
. Other E-book
manufacturers that deliver digital editions include Plastic Logic and Sony.
Archives of print newspapers, in some cases going back hundreds of years, are being digitized and made available online. Google is indexing existing digital archives produced by the newspapers themselves or by 3rd parties.
Newspaper and magazine archival is not new with microform
film formats solving the problem of efficiently storing and preserving though the format lacked accessibility. Many libraries, especially state libraries in the United States are archiving their collections digitally and converting existing microfilm to digital format. The Library of Congress
provides project planning assistance and the National Endowment for the Humanities
provides funding through grants from its National Digital Newspaper Program.
Digital magazines, ezines, e-editions and emags are sometimes referred to as digital editions but some of these formats are published only in digital format unlike digital editions which replicate a printed edition as well.
A 2008 report funded by digital-replica technology providers and auditing agencies counted 1,786 digital-replica editions having more than 7 million circulation among business-to-business publications, of which 230 editions were audited The same report counted 1,470 digital-replica editions of consumer magazines having 5.5 million digital circulation, of which 240 editions were audited. These authors estimated that by yearend 2009 there would be 8,000 digital magazines, having a combined distribution of more than 30 million people
Surveys have shown that, while not all subscribers prefer a digital edition, some do because of the environmental benefit, also because digital magazines are searchable and may easily be passed along or linked to. One such survey funded by a digital publisher reported on inputs from more than 30,000 subscribers to business, consumer and other digital magazines.
charging an annual subscription fee for its digital-replica edition
Many consumer magazines and newspapers are already available in eReader formats sold through booksellers.
Online magazine
An online magazine shares some features with a blog and also with online newspapers, but can usually be distinguished by its approach to editorial control...
or online newspaper
Online newspaper
An online newspaper, also known as a web newspaper, is a newspaper that exists on the World Wide Web or Internet, either separately or as an online version of a printed periodical....
delivered in electronic form which is formatted identically to the print version. Digital editions are often called digital facsimiles to underline the likeness to the print version. Digital editions have the benefit of reduced cost to the publisher and reader by avoiding the time and expense to print and deliver like a paper edition. This format is considered more environmentally friendly due to the reduction of paper and energy use. These editions also often feature interactive elements such as hyperlink
Hyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink is a reference to data that the reader can directly follow, or that is followed automatically. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document. Hypertext is text with hyperlinks...
s both within the publication itself and to other internet resources, searching and bookmarking, and can also incorporate multimedia such as video or animation to enhance articles themselves or for advertisements. Some delivery methods also include animation and sound effects replicating page turning to further enhance the experience of their print counterparts.Traditionally, magazine publishers have relied on two revenue sources: selling ads and selling magazines. Additionally some publishers are using other electronic publication methods such as RSS
RSS
-Mathematics:* Root-sum-square, the square root of the sum of the squares of the elements of a data set* Residual sum of squares in statistics-Technology:* RSS , "Really Simple Syndication" or "Rich Site Summary", a family of web feed formats...
to reach out to readers and inform them when new digital editions are available.
Current technologies are generally either reader-based, requiring download of an application and subsequent download of each edition, or browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
-based, requiring no application download (such as Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Acrobat is a family of application software developed by Adobe Systems to view, create, manipulate, print and manage files in Portable Document Format . All members of the family, except Adobe Reader , are commercial software, while the latter is available as freeware and can be downloaded...
) and is often Flash-based. Mygazines
Mygazines
Mygazines is a provider.The company's system converts a PDF into a page-flipping digital edition, with the option to enhance with links, videos and other features. The backend allows content owners to distribute, secure, monetize and track publications...
and Nxtbook Media
NXTbook Media
Nxtbook Media is a privately owned digital publishing company that provides the creation, distribution, and tracking of digital editions of magazines and other digital publications...
are among the main technology providers of web-based digital editions. Some application-based readers allow readers to access editions while not connected to the internet. Dedicated hardware such as the Amazon Kindle
Amazon Kindle
The Amazon Kindle is an e-book reader developed by Amazon.com subsidiary Lab126 which uses wireless connectivity to enable users to shop for, download, browse, and read e-books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and other digital media...
and the iPad
IPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
is also available for reading digital editions of select books, popular national magazines such as Relevant
Relevant Magazine
RELEVANT Magazine is a bimonthly magazine providing content on “God, life, and progressive culture”. It is published by RELEVANT Media Group and a circulation of 56,667. Its companion web presence, RELEVANTmagazine.com, launched in 2002 with the email newsletter, 850 Words of RELEVANT...
, TIME
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, Atlantic Monthly, and Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
and popular national newspapers such as the New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, and Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
. Other E-book
E-book
An electronic book is a book-length publication in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, and produced on, published through, and readable on computers or other electronic devices. Sometimes the equivalent of a conventional printed book, e-books can also be born digital...
manufacturers that deliver digital editions include Plastic Logic and Sony.
Archives of print newspapers, in some cases going back hundreds of years, are being digitized and made available online. Google is indexing existing digital archives produced by the newspapers themselves or by 3rd parties.
Newspaper and magazine archival is not new with microform
Microform
Microforms are any forms, either films or paper, containing microreproductions of documents for transmission, storage, reading, and printing. Microform images are commonly reduced to about one twenty-fifth of the original document size...
film formats solving the problem of efficiently storing and preserving though the format lacked accessibility. Many libraries, especially state libraries in the United States are archiving their collections digitally and converting existing microfilm to digital format. The Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
provides project planning assistance and the National Endowment for the Humanities
National Endowment for the Humanities
The National Endowment for the Humanities is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965 dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The NEH is located at...
provides funding through grants from its National Digital Newspaper Program.
Digital magazines, ezines, e-editions and emags are sometimes referred to as digital editions but some of these formats are published only in digital format unlike digital editions which replicate a printed edition as well.
Digital magazines
Digital-replica magazines number in the thousands—consumer and business publications, and house magazines for associations, institutions and corporations – and adoption was still increasing as of 2009.A 2008 report funded by digital-replica technology providers and auditing agencies counted 1,786 digital-replica editions having more than 7 million circulation among business-to-business publications, of which 230 editions were audited The same report counted 1,470 digital-replica editions of consumer magazines having 5.5 million digital circulation, of which 240 editions were audited. These authors estimated that by yearend 2009 there would be 8,000 digital magazines, having a combined distribution of more than 30 million people
Surveys have shown that, while not all subscribers prefer a digital edition, some do because of the environmental benefit, also because digital magazines are searchable and may easily be passed along or linked to. One such survey funded by a digital publisher reported on inputs from more than 30,000 subscribers to business, consumer and other digital magazines.
Reduced printing and distribution costs
The ability for publishers to save by moving some or all subscribers from print to digital is widely accepted. Oracle magazine, which has 176,000 of its 516,000 subscribers receiving digital according to its June 2009 BPA circulation statement, is said to be the most widely circulated digital edition of a business-to-business publication. Publishers who do this need to choose whether to make some issues all-digital, move some subscribers to digital edition, add some digital-only subscribers, or send all subscribers the digital editionPaid subscription revenue
In 2009, a major consumer magazine, PC magazine, went all-digital,charging an annual subscription fee for its digital-replica edition
Many consumer magazines and newspapers are already available in eReader formats sold through booksellers.