Get over it, haters – apps really are the future, says Wired publisher
paidcontent
There has been a growing revolt in the publishing community against the idea that iPhone and iPad apps are the best route to digital dollars. The Financial Times shuttered its apps this month, while a popularessay by another publisher lamented that apps were a “collective delusion” and an expensive failure. That’s bunk, according to Wired publisher Howard Mittman, who said in a recent interview that apps have proven “incredibly profitable” and touts the publication’s 165,000 tablet subscribers (65,000 of these are pure-digital subs). Mittman adds that Wired readers also spend a significant amount of time with the tablet version and that he “missed the memo” about the failure of apps. So what’s going on? Is there something special about Wired, or have other publishers simply failed to execute correctly?