Steve Nichols says that if the rumour mill is true Apple could soon launch a new computer that could herald the death of the printed newspaper. His argument? Just look at what iTunes has done for the delivery of music and video. If you could get great multimedia content on a small handheld computer automatically each day, and for only a few pence or free, would you give up print?
 Apple has booked the the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (a commonly-used location for Apple events) in San Francisco for an announcement on January 26 2010.
So what I hear you cry.
Well, if the rumour mill is to be believed the company is going to unveil its new iSlate tablet computer. Although Apple always refuses to comment on upcoming releases the massive amount of information being leaked about this product means it is going to be special.
If you haven't heard of a tablet computer before imagine an over-large iPhone or iPod Touch, probably with a seven or 10-inch screen.
It has no physical keyboard, but has a virtual one built in that springs to life when you want it.
I can still hear you saying so what. The “so what” is that this could revolutionise the way we think about receiving and reading media content.
The newspaper industry has been struggling to get to grips with how to make money in an online world for some time. Yes, we like to look at the web, but that means sitting down at a computer or struggling with a four-inch screen on the move.
And that's when it hit me the other day. What if you could have your favourite magazines and newspapers delivered to your iSlate or tablet or whatever it ends up being called?
Archaic
The small size of the computer would mean you could hold it anywhere and you could incorporate audio, video, images and text however you want. Think about it. In this day and age does it really make sense to spend thousands each day printing paper-based publications? Then they have to be delivered – its archaic.
So what if Apple could bundle your favourite publications up and have them delivered to your iSlate each day? You could buy them on iTunes and the whole process would be seamless. After all, look at what iTunes has done for the audio business – for a large proportion of the younger generation this is the only way they buy their music nowadays.
And with iTunes expanding into video territory is that going the same way? How many us now use Sky+, Freeview hard drives or BBC iPlayer to watch our programmes when we want?
The world of media delivery has come on leaps and bounds, but we still have ink-on-paper newspapers – why? Is it really because we like the tactile feel? Or because you can do so much more with the design and imagery?
The much-lauded Amazon Kindle and Sony eReader were very much toes in the digital water as far as the delivery of printed matter to online devices is concerned. But Apple has a knack of knowing exactly what people want before they know it themselves.
So if Apple does reveal the iSlate AND BUNDLES IN CONTENT ON iTUNES it could be on to a winner.
So as communicators should we embrace this upcoming technology too?
Absolutely!
Multiplatform
What we need to do is:
Embrace multimedia content production and multiplatform distribution – think audio, think video, think graphs, think images, think words
If you want to engage your audience you have got to start giving them material in the same form as they get it elsewhere.
Produce your content faster and make it as professional as it can be.
Words matter, but video will increasingly rule the roost as the next generation come along.
Start to ask the youngsters in your organisation what they want rather than give them the same old stuff.
Think about whether its time for that printed publication to be put to sleep.
If you haven't embraced the whole gamut of communication and Web 2.0 tools now available to you you're not really taking your job seriously.
If the iSlate becomes a reality AND thought has been given to how it could be used properly we could be entering yet another new era in communication technology. Make sure you're ready.
Steve runs InfoTech Communications (www.infotechcomms.co.uk) and is editor of this web site. InfoTech specialises in online communications and Steve has acted as consultant and trainer for many blue-chip companies including Aviva, AWG, Shell, BT, Standard Life, HBOS, BNFL, Accenture and Australia New Zealand Bank.
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