What's new?

Amazon has taken its next big step in dominating the e-book market with its release of 'Kindle Unlimited', which allows subscribers unlimited access to e-books, for $9.99 a month.

Although currently limited to the US, Amazon's new service has the potential to dramatically alter the way books are consumed. The subscription model itself is not a new one; companies like Spotify are well-known for changing the way we listen to and purchase music. More recently, ventures like Readly, a subscription-based magazine service,  have taken steps to translate this into the Digital Publishing world.

Issuu recently launched "Clip", a feature that lets users grab snippets from any Issuu published magazine, add a comment and share the Clip via social networks. While some think this is making leaps and bounds for the company and their users, it made me consider the implications for digital publishing, ownership and free content.

On the one hand, you could argue that if features like Clip became popular and eventually rolled out to paid or membership publications, it could affect sales. Why would readers pay for a digital edition or a subscription when they can find the best bits on pinterest and twitter?

As computers change and adapt, it’s important to keep asking ourselves how this will affect digital publishing.

Tech is getting smaller by the year and moving closer to our skin, or rather we are pulling it closer. From human-detached desktops, to more mobile laptops/notebooks; and most recently transitioning into our pockets in the form a mobile phones - we have now reached a stage where technology is wearable and resides on the surface of our skin. The next step doesn’t bear thinking about; microchips and internal tech turning humans part-cyborg.

Virgin Holidays have just launched their first digital publication - 'Unleashed'. Is its sleek design and interactive content enough to make it stand out in the world of Digital Publishing?

Despite having a somewhat predictable image on the front cover, my first impression of the magazine is that I'm definitely going to come away wanting to book a holiday somewhere exotic. Both the cover and Branson's introduction to 'Unleashed' are full of challenges: 'Could you zipline above a jungle canopy?'; 'Have you got what it takes to become a sushi master?' and 'Come on, Dive in!'.

Independent publishing has never been an easy journey - without the support of editors, publishing companies and distributors it can be a tough route to go down. I’m not just talking about books, this concerns all publishing: newspapers, magazines, journals, supplements and membership publications included.