FYI

The Economist Espresso hits 1m downloads as app reaches first birthday

The Economist EspressoThe Economist is reporting 1m downloads of its Espresso app that was launched a year ago. The app has a weekly readership of 200,000 and is to add a Saturday edition.

The announcement:

This weekend The Economist celebrates the first birthday of Espresso, its award-winning daily edition, by adding a Saturday edition to the popular morning briefing. Launched in November 2014, The Economist Espresso serves as a complement to the weekly edition of the publication and performs the same function—distilling what’s important from the news and explaining what it means, providing readers with a trusted filter on world affairs. Available via iOS and Android smartphone apps or as an e-mail, Espresso is a concise briefing designed to be read on the go.

In the year since its launch the Espresso app has been downloaded 1m times. Espresso now has a daily readership of more than 100,000 and a weekly readership of 200,000. Published each weekday morning in three editions for the Americas, Europe and Asia, The EconomistEspresso brings readers up to speed in just a couple of minutes. Displaying The Economist‘s characteristic brevity, clarity, opinion and wit, it provides an espresso shot of global analysis that can be consumed quickly as part of a morning routine. Each edition consists of five 150-word “chunks” providing analysis of the news agenda, plus a brief news round-up, market summary and quote of the day.

“We have been thrilled by the response to Espresso in the past year,” said Tom Standage, deputy editor of The Economist and head of digital strategy. “Readers have told us that it provides the antidote to information overload, giving them just the news they need to ensure they are ready for the day.” In a review on the iTunes store, where the app has a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, one reader described it as “the perfect balance between brevity and elucidation”. In the year since its launch Espresso was named Digital Innovation of the Year in the PPA Awards, was awarded silver medal in the “app of the year” category in the British Media Awards and has just been shortlisted in the Digital Innovation category of the British Journalism Awards.

Now The Economist is adding a Saturday morning edition to Espresso in response to reader demand, with a focus on culture, science and sport, and a round-up of the week’s news. “The Saturday edition of Espresso is a logical extension of the weekday product,” said Mr Standage. “We noticed that a lot of readers were opening the app on Saturday, and in surveys they demanded a weekend edition. So here it is.”

The Economist Espresso can be accessed either via an iPhone or Android smartphone, using a free app. Full access to its content is available to existing subscribers to The Economist’s digital edition or print+digital bundle; they can also choose e-mail delivery. Non-subscribers can read one free story a day, and can subscribe to Espresso for £2.29/$2.99 a month. To download the app, search for “Economist Espresso” on the App Store or Google Play, or visit economist.com/digital

Source: press release

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