Apple unveiled a new News app for iPhone and iPad today at WWDC. It replaces News Stand and is simply called “News”. It’s essentially an alternative to news readers like Flipboard, and Apple wants to include all publications big and small in it.
The app will be included with iOS 9, which is due out this fall. It follows over a million topics and pulls relevant stories based on users’ interests, so they can easily be read, shared, and/or saved for later. It’s powered by Apple’s new Apple News Format, which is described as a publishing format that allows publishers to “create beautiful layouts”.
“News seamlessly delivers the articles you want to read in a beautiful and uncluttered format, while respecting your privacy, because Apple doesn’t share your personal data,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “We already have nearly 20 publishers representing more than 50 titles joining us, including Condé Nast, ESPN, The New York Times, Hearst, Time Inc., CNN and Bloomberg.”
“Condé Nast’s premium content deserves a premium mobile experience and the News app delivers that,” said Bob Sauerberg, President of Condé Nast. “News offers an environment that combines the rich, immersive design of our photography, artwork and editorial expertise with the interactivity and dynamism of digital media — it’s stunning.”
“ESPN fans are incredibly engaged in the way they consume our content, so the more vibrant experience we can offer, the happier they’ll be,” said John Skipper, President of ESPN Inc. and Co-Chairman of Disney Media Networks. “We’ve seen incredible success with our ESPN apps on iOS, and News is only going to make a richer, more personal experience for our readers so they can stay up-to-date on the sports news that matters to them.”
The app will be available in the US, UK, and Australia. Publishers who wish to have their content in it can go here. Apple says it will launch additional publishing tools later in the year.
It will be interesting to see if Apple expands the News app to Android, where it is already launching its new Music service.
Images via Apple