Online newspapers tempt readers

[Alexander Turcic]

BBC News runs a great story how there has been a tremendous boom in the consumption of online newspapers.

According to Timothy Balding, director general of World Association of Newspapers, web audiences for newspapers have grown by 350% over the last five years.

[MarkSaksa]

Dear e-paper readers


I´m a Finnish journalist working in Washington D.C. I write for a major Finnish newspaper called Helsingin Sanomat. I'm interested in speaking with people who read their newspapers with e-readers. Do they feel difference paper and ink. Is there any? If yes is it positive or negative? I would like to speak with you on the phone but if you live in Washington D.C. area maybe we can each other.

--
Markku Saksa
3010 Cleveland Avenue NW
Washington DC 20008 USA
cell: +1 202 460 5353
tel: +1 202 332 6750

e-mail markku.saksa@comcast.net

[pwjone1]

Originally Posted by MarkSaksa

Dear e-paper readers


I´m a Finnish journalist working in Washington D.C. I write for a major Finnish newspaper called Helsingin Sanomat. I'm interested in speaking with people who read their newspapers with e-readers. Do they feel difference paper and ink. Is there any? If yes is it positive or negative? I would like to speak with you on the phone but if you live in Washington D.C. area maybe we can each other.

--
Markku Saksa
3010 Cleveland Avenue NW
Washington DC 20008 USA
cell: +1 202 460 5353
tel: +1 202 332 6750

e-mail markku.saksa@comcast.net

I would imagine that the majority of on-line Newspaper reading goes on via PCs or similar, not yet eBooks. Your typical eBook is still kind of small screened, low-res.

For my household, New York, we get two newspapers (NYTimes is one, the other is more local), but while my wife never reads online, I actually tend to read them more online than off. Partly a time thing, I read early in the morning, sometimes the paper hasn't shown up yet, partly the newspapers themselves have become sort of link pages. My wife, almost never online, always holding a printed page. But I have to say, reading online, I miss the ability to scan the paper, read articles that I don't necessarily spot online. And even with the shrinking newspapers, and ink/quality problems, they are somewhat easier on the eyes, than computer screens (and I have nice ones, 24", so it's the classic screen vs. print thing).

eBook readers, when they get big enough, will take off on newspapers. And I'd say the impending 9.7" screens (or the iRex DR 10.2" current screen) are the base entry level for practical newspaper reading. Not that people are not reading Newspapers on Kindles, but I think the 9.7" ones will be the tipping point. And of course, e-Ink type technology makes them then easier on the eyes. Plus there's probably a heck of a play on saved-trees/green, coming up, soon as the marketing types get going.

[daffy4u]

There are quite a few members who read newspapers on their ebook readers. As you may know Kindle owners have a variety of newspapers (should we even call them news "papers" anymore) available to them via Amazon. We also have many members who turn RSS feeds into newpapers "ebooks" with Calibre or the online software at Feedbooks.com to use on their readers.

It's Sunday but as we get into the work week, I'm sure you'll get responses from more members.

Welcome to MobileRead!

[narbeauchamp]

We are a multi-reader family. Personally,I have newspapers that I read on my Sony Reader (via RSS recipes,using Calibre and Feedbooks)-the others keep intending to figure out how to do it (and I keep saying I will help)-but that hasn't happened yet.I would guess that I read most newspapers online-with the exception of the New York Times,on the weekends,which still have delivered-gave up the weekday subscription a while ago,finding that I was reading most of the articles online the evening before.Same with with WSJ (but still have online subscription ). During the week,read the free daily papers they pass out at the subway,he buys the NYP.If I had to guess,I would say I read 80% of newspapers online (taking into account the four or five newspapers I regularly read,some of the local tabloids (NYP,NYDN),some trade magazines/papers ) and about 20% printed-and I am including my reader reading in my online figure.


I do still prefer the printed page-I get tired of reading on my computer screen.I find reading on my reader to be a good midway point-I will probably do that more as time goes by.Additionally-the one thing I do miss most,is how you can "stumble" onto articles when you're physically reading-a little harder to do when reading a paper online,and even to some extent on the reader.

Maybe via partnerships (like Hearsts planned digital reader) and when prices come down,we will see more people reading papers on ereaders. Recently I met a Kindle owner on the subway-the one thing he DID grumble about,was despite loving his Kindle ,and how easy it was to buy books,and get papers delivered-was grousing about his WSJ subscription-apparently he had to get a separate one,and he wasn't pleased about that.For me personally,I don't mind "tinkering",so the process of getting the papers onto my reader is a little bit more fun with my gadget ,but I know that others are not so inclined (prime example the other readers in my household ! )