AP launches news service geared for iPhone
NEW YORK (AP) - May 5, 2008 AP had announced the Mobile News Network at its annual meeting
April 14 in Washington. AP's president and chief executive, Tom
Curley, said then that six newspaper companies were working to help
develop the new service.
Paul Caluori, director of client content services for AP, said
the service now has 107 newspapers participating, up from 18 at the
time of the announcement. The papers include The Miami Herald, the
San Francisco Chronicle and the St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press.
Companies that help connect advertisers with networks of Web
sites will be among the sellers of ads for the new service and will
share revenues with the news providers.
The service will deliver local news from participating member
newspapers and national and international news from AP. The reports
will be organized by ZIP code.
Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. and others also offer news services
tailored for mobile devices, but Jeffrey Litvack, global product
development director for AP, said the Mobile News Network would
offer easier access to local news stories.
Apple offered guidance on how to best tailor the service to the
iPhone but has no formal role with the product, Litvack said.
Six newspaper publishers participated in the initial setup of
rules governing the service: Advance Publications Inc., Hearst
Corp., Lee Enterprises Inc., McClatchy Co., MediaNews Group Inc.
and Rust Communications Inc. Since then Media General Inc. and
newspapers held in partnerships in California have been among those
that have joined.
Caluori said that the two largest newspaper companies in the
country, Gannett Co. and Tribune Co., hadn't yet decided whether to
join the program and were still evaluating it.
The Associated Press is a not-for-profit news cooperative owned
by its member news organizations. It was founded in 1846.
---
On the Net:
http://www.apnews.com
http://www.iphone.com/webapps
