IFRA

IFRA: How is your offer of NRC Handelsblad on the iLiad from iRex going so far?

Charles Lansu: After introduction March 2008, we immediately sold around 500 readers including an annual ePaper subscription in the first week. Our regular print subscribers get the ePaper edition for free when purchasing the eReader in our webshop for €499 (retail price €599). New ePaper readers are offered the device together with an annual subscription for €699 while an annual subscription only costs €189. In comparison: for a print edition, we charge €316.50 a year. Regarding the daily ePaper edition itself: the subscriber has the possibility to download our complete evening newspaper including our supplements around three hours before being delivered at home around 18:30 p.m. Ideal for anyone traveling by public transport, for example: at the office you download the ePaper so you are able to read the latest news on your way back home which makes an online connection unneccesary.

In the near future we will broaden our downloadable content with our morning tabloid nrc.next and magazines, books and more. Furthermore, the device offers multiple options like storing books, documents or reports and is also suitable for making notes. We had sold almost 2000 eReaders ourselves to current and new (ePaper) subscribers within a year. We do also sell only digital subscriptions to those who already have an eReader or bought it elsewhere. Which makes the total NRC ePaper circulation around 2500 at the moment. As a typical device still in its early adopting phase, relatively pricy yet somewhat proven technology, these figures are beyond our initial expectations. For now it’s just a small share of our total daily circulation of around 232,000 copies while our morning tabloid nrc.next attracts an additional 90,000 young readers. But with the current accelaration of new display technologies, we are convinced the ePaper numbers will increase spectacularly in upcoming years. And as an innovative brand, we prefer a frontrow seat.

IFRA: How happy are you with the iLiad in terms technology? Do you also offer an e-reader version of your products for other devices, such as those from Sony, Amazon?

Charles Lansu: When launching in March 2008, we deliberately went for the iLiad: at that moment, ti was the most advanced device in the Dutch market and from a Dutch company as well. In the meantime, we can’t wait welcoming more advanced readers of the large OEMs in terms of performance, screen technology (larger, colour, flexible), connectivity, browsing and design. For the near future, we do not believe in closed business models in which the customer has no choice except that particular one offered. Our philosophy is to make our high-quality journalistic content suitable for any device or channel, anywhere, anytime. The customer decides whether print or any other possible digital platform serves him/her best. And like I said before, new technology develops fast. We don't only focus on e-ink technology but also follow closely other innovations in mobile and display devices.

IFRA: What is your workflow like to make your products available on the iLiad?

Charles Lansu: Most of the workflow is done internally by our New Media department, responsible for the realisation of all our digital products and services. We use an Elara workflow setup and the Callisto ePaper suite from our partner SoliDAM to create the ePaper edition fully automatically. We are not available on the Kindle or other readers yet, but this will be the case within a few months.

IFRA: Is there any extra advertising opportunities in an e-reader that you are exploiting or thinking about?

Charles Lansu: There are many advertising propositions possible, ranging from the more regular display ads to interactive solutions. We started without any advertising deliberately but at the moment we are discussing the possibilities with several advertisers. Especially the premium brands are seriously interested. Not only because of this new channel, it's also the initial target group, thriving early adopters, that attracts them highly.

IFRA: What do you think about a kiosk model, in which the owner of an e-reader device could get different newspapers per day, without needing to subscribe to a particular one?

Charles Lansu: That’s a nice example of digitalising the kiosk in the streets and a great alternative for professionals, expats, commuters and the real news junkies in addition to their favorite newspapers.

IFRA: How do you think the e-reader experience differs from the paper experience in terms of reading?

Charles Lansu: Not that much. It’s about the content and evolving the digital reading experience towards minimal as pleasant as reading a print copy.

IFRA: Do you think e-reader subscriptions will surpass print copies at some point? Will e-reading complement paper reading or substitute it?

Charles Lansu: This is not a question of technology; it's a question of what the customer prefers most. And that could very well be possible more in terms of being complementary to print instead of replacing it. Print is still by far more customer friendly: cheap, mobile and flexible. Sometimes easily forgotten in an online-dominated era.