Winning Online

By Ralph Serra

It is no secret that in recent years print news and print media have taken a serious hit. There are several factors that have contributed to this decline, however one of, if not the main reason is the internet. The integration of the internet into our lives as a culture means that we can simply search for any news we desire at any time we want. With such a convenience at our fingertips, why would anyone want to pay to have print media and news delivered periodically?

Print news and media have held on for a few reasons. First and foremost for some people it is tradition. Older generations are not as tech savvy, and have lived lives where they read a paper or a magazine for entertainment and news. They are not going to be easily swayed to embrace the internet culture. Other reasons include the ease of flipping through a magazine or a paper and the feeling you get. There is no question that getting news online is easy, but you do not get the same experience as when you flip through a paper. In the past reading news on the internet was a much slower drawn out process than reading an actual paper. Readers are also less likely to read advertisements when reading the news online and that is where the real money in print media and news comes from.

Earlier last week, Google revealed a new hub called “Fast Flip.” This new hub was designed to make reading news online much quicker and more visually stimulating. Google even went as far as to get the publishers involved as well. They will be sharing advertising revenue with the publishers, so they are no longer the enemy of the print world. Because they are no longer the enemy, participating publishers will allow Google to link to their sites directly from the new hub. Everything considered, this really does have a tremendous plus side for both parties.

When you go to Fast Flip, you see three rows of periodicals laid out. The top row is based on popularity, it includes recent, most viewed, and recommended. The second row is broken down into sections; this includes politics, business, U.S., world, sports, etc. The third row is broken down by sources. Some sources include BBC News, New York Times, Business Week, Newsweek, and The Washington Post.

This layout allows a reader to quickly and efficiently flip through and see what they want to read. At the same time they are viewing the ads along the sides of the page. This makes the whole online reading process much more like the actual act of reading a news paper or a magazine. While making it more like reading an actual news paper it also eliminates the main problem with previous online news reading: the fact that it is so slow.

Only time will tell how the new hub will be embraced by the public, but in my opinion it is a great way to read periodicals online. I simply go to the site, scroll through, see what catches my eye and take it from there. If there is something specific I am looking for I can select a source or section I would like to view. Or if I really do not know what it is I am looking for I can see what others have most viewed or recommend. Dare I say this is almost a luxury? No more inky fingers from news papers or pop-up plagued online news. The sky is the limit.