Joe Wikert interviews me about our new HTML5 mobile publishing platform pinch/zoom Press that we created to make mobile publishing easy.
Some of the highlights of the interview:
- The platform consists of three different pieces of technology – A native app for iOS devices, a layout tool and a content management system. [Discussed at 1:50]
- Why choose HTML5 rather than EPUB 3? – As flexible and powerful as EPUB is, it’s still not as platform agnostic as HTML5. Plus, every device comes with a web browser but not necessarily an EPUB reader. [Discussed at 2:56]
- But it’s really “not about EPUB or HTML” – Don’t focus on the end client. It’s about understanding how your content is managed and about how your content is presented in a mixed platform world. [Discussed at 5:07]
- Portability introduces some limitations – HTML5 is wonderful for portability and knowing that your product will render well on all platforms but it also means you might not have access to sensors, cameras and other potentially important device features. [Discussed at 7:20]
- Native apps are here to stay – Yes, that means we’ll have to invest in apps across at least two platforms. The simple truth is the native app will probably always offer the best user experience for that particular platform. [Discussed at 10:40]
- Pricing – pinch/zoom is leaning towards only charging for the content management system, and that’s likely to be a monthly fee. [Discussed at 19:45]