McSweeney’s, the Dave Eggers-founded publishing outfit, has entered the smartphone age with a brand new iPhone and iPod Touch app that sells for $5.99 in the Apple App store. What do you think–in a world of free literary iPhone applications (from IndieBound to Stanza, will readers pay for mobile content?
UPDATE: Yes they will… GalleyCat reader Tina Pohlman notes that the app has risen to number one on the “Top Paid App” category in the Books section of the Apple App store. According to the release, subscribing to the app will deliver six-months worth of iPhone-exclusive content, along with choice selections from the publisher’s online content site, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. Nevertheless, the unconventional press promised to maintain a focus on “books, paper, and exploring the possibilities and challenges of our physical objects.” Upcoming projects include a prototype newspaper and pentagonal book.
Here’s more from the site: “Small Chair [is] a weekly sampler from all branches of the McSweeney’s family. One week you might receive a story from the upcoming Quarterly, the next week an interview from the Believer, the next a short film from a future Wholphin. Occasionally, it might be a song, an art portfolio, who knows. Early contributors will include Spike Jonze, Wells Tower, Chris Ware, and Jonathan Ames. This material will not be available online and is pretty sure to be good stuff.”