The Economist is planning a Middle East marketing campaign to promote its iPad and iPhone applications, in a region it says has "high potential" for its digital products.
The business magazine is well known for its advertising campaigns, with bold marketing messages taking part of the credit for higher sales of the print title.
To further increase readership, the magazine has launched applications - or apps - for the Apple iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, with the aim of boosting its global digital user base to 1 million subscribers.
"The global campaign will cover the Middle East," said David Taylor-Evans, The Economist Group's managing director for the Middle East and Africa.
"In addition, we are showcasing our digital platforms with free Wi-Fi hot spots in popular cafe locations in Dubai and Abu Dhabi," he said.
"The app will give a wider range of delivery options for subscribers in the region. In addition to the print version, all subscribers receive access to The Economist in all its digital forms".
Applications include a free weekly sample of articles, with users given the option of paying for access to the entire magazine for US$5.99 (Dh22) per issue.
Oscar Grut, the managing director of digital editions for The Economist, said there was "a very high potential" for the magazine's apps in the Middle East, partly because of the relatively slow distribution of the print edition.
"It's quite hard to reach a lot of the countries in the Middle East region in a timely manner," he said.
He added that the initial uptake of the apps had been strong. "In the UAE, we are the 11th most-downloaded iPad application. It's a good, encouraging start," he said. "I'm pretty bullish about people wanting to read our kind of content on digital devices."
Analysts expect Apple to sell about 7.5m iPads this year, with some forecasting sales of 20m units in 2011.
Mr Grut confirmed that The Economist had a global target of 1 million digital subscribers within three years. "That's the target we set ourselves for digital subscriptions across all platforms - it's not iPad-specific," he said. The title was already available via the Kindle and Zinio digital magazine services, and the publisher was also "looking at other platforms", Mr Grut said.
News outlets around the world are starting to embrace apps for smartphones and digital tablets, through which money can be raised via subscription fees and advertising revenue.
Last month the Financial Times said its iPad app had generated more than £1 million (Dh5.8m) in advertising revenue since it was launched in May, with more than 400,000 downloads. The Economist is 50 per cent owned by the Pearson Group, which also owns the Financial Times.
Publishers in the Middle East have been relatively slow to embrace the trend, but some newspapers, such as The National and 7DAYS, have launched mobile apps.
7DAYS, based in Dubai, has an edition for the iPhone, and recently launched an app for BlackBerry handsets. An expanded iPhone app, plus downloads compatible with Android, Windows and Symbian operating systems, are to follow.
Will Breitholtz, the digital manager at the 7DAYS, says the newspaper is bullish on mobile apps but hesitant on the iPad.
"To be honest, the jury is still out on the iPad in this region. It's still not as significant a part of the market … at this stage," he said. "We don't think that it's as popular as perhaps it was perceived at the beginning."
He said that while the 7DAYS advertising-driven mobile apps were "not yet" profitable, he expected revenues to pick up soon.
"We are getting good click-through rates for the banner [advertising] on the applications," he said. "I'm confident that we will see good, consistent levels of revenue by quarter one next year."
[ bflanagan@thenational.ae ]
MEDIEVIL (1998)
Developer: SCE Studio Cambridge
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Console: PlayStation, PlayStation 4 and 5
Rating: 3.5/5
Specs
Engine: 2-litre
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 255hp
Torque: 273Nm
Price: Dh240,000
RESULTS
6.30pm UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (TB) US$100,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner Final Song, Christophe Soumillon (jockey), Saeed bin Suroor (trainer).
7.05pm Handicap (TB) $135,000 (Turf) 1,000m
Winner Almanaara, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson.
7.40pm Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner Grand Argentier, Brett Doyle, Doug Watson.
8.15pm Meydan Challenge Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Major Partnership, Patrick Cosgrave, Saeed bin Suroor.
8.50pm Dubai Stakes Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner Gladiator King, Mickael Barzalona, Satish Seemar.
9.25pm Dubai Racing Club Classic Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,410m
Winner Universal Order, Richard Mullen, David Simcock.
Juvenile arthritis
Along with doctors, families and teachers can help pick up cases of arthritis in children.
Most types of childhood arthritis are known as juvenile idiopathic arthritis. JIA causes pain and inflammation in one or more joints for at least six weeks.
Dr Betina Rogalski said "The younger the child the more difficult it into pick up the symptoms. If the child is small, it may just be a bit grumpy or pull its leg a way or not feel like walking,” she said.
According to The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases in US, the most common symptoms of juvenile arthritis are joint swelling, pain, and stiffness that doesn’t go away. Usually it affects the knees, hands, and feet, and it’s worse in the morning or after a nap.
Limping in the morning because of a stiff knee, excessive clumsiness, having a high fever and skin rash are other symptoms. Children may also have swelling in lymph nodes in the neck and other parts of the body.
Arthritis in children can cause eye inflammation and growth problems and can cause bones and joints to grow unevenly.
In the UK, about 15,000 children and young people are affected by arthritis.
Du Football Champions
The fourth season of du Football Champions was launched at Gitex on Wednesday alongside the Middle East’s first sports-tech scouting platform.“du Talents”, which enables aspiring footballers to upload their profiles and highlights reels and communicate directly with coaches, is designed to extend the reach of the programme, which has already attracted more than 21,500 players in its first three years.
SPECS
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder petrol (V Class); electric motor with 60kW or 90kW powerpack (EQV)
Power: 233hp (V Class, best option); 204hp (EQV, best option)
Torque: 350Nm (V Class, best option); TBA (EQV)
On sale: Mid-2024
Price: TBA
The specs
Engine: 3.5-litre, twin-turbo V6
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Power: 410hp
Torque: 495Nm
Price: starts from Dh495,000 (Dh610,000 for the F-Sport launch edition tested)
On sale: now
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
HIV on the rise in the region
A 2019 United Nations special analysis on Aids reveals 37 per cent of new HIV infections in the Mena region are from people injecting drugs.
New HIV infections have also risen by 29 per cent in western Europe and Asia, and by 7 per cent in Latin America, but declined elsewhere.
Egypt has shown the highest increase in recorded cases of HIV since 2010, up by 196 per cent.
Access to HIV testing, treatment and care in the region is well below the global average.
Few statistics have been published on the number of cases in the UAE, although a UNAIDS report said 1.5 per cent of the prison population has the virus.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday
Second leg
Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm
Game is on BeIN Sports
The biog
Favourite Quote: “Real victories are those that protect human life, not those that result from its destruction emerge from its ashes,” by The late king Hussain of Jordan.
Favourite Hobby: Writing and cooking
Favourite Book: The Prophet by Gibran Khalil Gibran
Indoor Cricket World Cup Dubai 2017
Venue Insportz, Dubai; Admission Free
Fixtures - Open Men 2pm: India v New Zealand, Malaysia v UAE, Singapore v South Africa, Sri Lanka v England; 8pm: Australia v Singapore, India v Sri Lanka, England v Malaysia, New Zealand v South Africa
Fixtures - Open Women Noon: New Zealand v England, UAE v Australia; 6pm: England v South Africa, New Zealand v Australia
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants
The team
Videographer: Jear Velasquez
Photography: Romeo Perez
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory
Models: Meti and Clinton at MMG
Video assistant: Zanong Maget
Social media: Fatima Al Mahmoud
The specs
Engine: Twin electric motors and 105kWh battery pack
Power: 619hp
Torque: 1,015Nm
Transmission: Single-speed auto
Touring range: Up to 561km
On sale: Q3 or Q4 2022
Price: From Dh635,000
AIDA RETURNS
Director: Carol Mansour
Starring: Aida Abboud, Carol Mansour
Rating: 3.5./5