As is frequently the case, Mathew Ingram of GigaOM has written a perceptive post about the disconnect between the folks developing “a Netflix for magazines” and the demonstrated demand for more granular content.
Designing content access to reflect “what readers want” has been a persistent theme here. There’s a lot to be said for the “lean consumption” model, one that emphasizes “minimizing customers’ time and effort and delivering exactly what they want, when and where they want it”.
This doesn’t say that a digital magazine delivery model that emulates the current newsstand browsing experience can’t succeed. To do so, it has to solve a problem a reader actually has. Otherwise, it may make bundled magazine content even more of a commodity play.
