Last fall, the Toronto Star detailed how it would end its digital paywall and launch a free tablet edition, based on their partnership with La Presse, which was able to launch their own successful version in 2013.
Now, Star Touch for iPad has launched, which is based on La Press+ (460,000 weekly readers). The Star Touch iPad app features the following:
In-app features let you get hands-on with your city, world, sports, business and entertainment news in a way like never before:
– Expand photo galleries to full-screen
– Tap into live news and weather
– Interact with stats information
– Adjust type size and background
– Explore relevant links to web
– Engage with advertisements (no automated players)
The free app has interactive ads to appeal to younger generations, to allow users to “swipe, tap, play with and explore advertisements and sponsored content.” The tablet has over 70 dedicated staff to produce the tablet edition, which will arrive daily by 5:30AM EDT.
“This marks the first day of the next chapter of the Toronto Star,” says Ali Rahnema, the Star’s chief operating officer, digital. “Star Touch will help ensure our journalism is freely available to the communities we serve. It’s a unique initiative in an industry undergoing rapid change. This company-wide effort, which involved hundreds of employees from all departments, is testament to the Star’s continuing commitment to providing industry-leading products that appeal to readers of all ages.”
Star Touch looks to build on the success of La Press+ with its new daily tablet edition, where others have failed, such as The Daily by News Corp. in the U.S.
Let us know if you’re going to be reading Star Touch—share your initial thoughts of this new interactive news app in the comments below.
Click here to download Star Touch by Toronto Star in the App Store—it’s free.
