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The main page of Paste magazine's mPlayer looks like the app-filled screen of a smartphone.What if you read a magazine as if you were perusing the apps on your mobile device? That's the idea behind Paste magazine's mPlayer, digital magazine that pulls words and multimedia into one integrated screen.
Music and arts fans may be familiar with Paste, a reasonably cool print magazine that thrived for about five years before hitting the skids when the economy tanked a few years ago. The editors tried a few different revenue models centered around tiered print/digital subscription models, including an interesting series of alternating full-size, then mini, print magazines. None of that worked, and editors killed the print edition last year to focus on a stripped-down website that has been a shell of its former self.
mPlayer is an interesting Version 3.0 evolution, and taps into the app generation for design inspiration. Topics -- be they individual feature stories or columns; music, book or film reviews; Mp3s or videos -- are visually presented on the main page as images similar to app icons. Click on the icon and up opens the content. You can then page through content chronologically or go back to the main page.
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Story pages are clean and easy to read. The mP3 player atop the page follows you throughout.Old-school Paste fans will remember the monthly sampler of new music that came with the magazine. A digital version of that sampler is a core component of mPlayer, only this time the player is embedded at the top of all pages. Editors are promising seven new songs per week. A recent five-song stream featured The Low Anthem, The Decemberists, Bright Eyes, Over the Rhine and Dawes. Talk about sticky content.
I've given mPlayer a few quick spins and outside of one key weakness (a template with a single screenwide column of hard-to-read text), I like it. But I'd like it better if it worked on my iPad, where the integrated content packaging would be perfect. The good news is Paste is planning iOS and Android versions for launch later this year.
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mPlayer has a flexible design template, although this wide horizontal photo forces a single column that's too wide to easily read.Paste says mPlayer will be free for "9 weekly issues during our Beta Preview." In September, pricing will be 99 cents per issue or $36 for a 48-issue annual subscription.
Advertising is minimal, which is a plus for design but bad for long-term prospects. A buck a week in subscription costs doesn't go very far when you factor in basics like serving costs, freelance fees and other operating costs.
After issue 1, Paste shows a lot of the same magic that disappeared with the print magazine. Let's hope the mag maintains that enthusiasm -- consistent quality and unique voices are keys to surviving in a media environment where Pitchfork, Popmatters, The Leftsetz Letter and other digital-only sites have filled Paste's vacuum in recent years.