iPod Bless America

If you know me or read my blog, you'll probably be aware of the fact that I'm no stranger to portraiture. The power to capture a fleeting moment of a lifetime's personality is a skill not to be taken lightly. Get the glint in an eye or the slant of a mouth wrong or a mis-angled eyebrow inflection and suddenly, the portrait is of someone else entirely.

This pressure to bottle the essence of an individual then apply the visual entity to canvas holds no greater importance than when the subject is the leader of the free world. When Brandwidth were given the opportunity to work with the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery in Washington DC we naturally (but reverentially) jumped at the chance.

So, how do you approach a project about America's figureheads without going over ground already covered by a number of other iPad apps? Well, we weren't keen to take the route of many whereby they regurgitate Wikipedia entries, shroud them in an uninspiring digital interface then spit them back out into the App Store. Others cater directly to the education market and dress the information appropriately – i.e. they appeal to kids, rather than the wider audience.

We knew we had unique (and official) access to a stunning collection of portraits, original supporting documents and artefacts. This wasn't going to be an exercise in creating 'the ultimate resource of all information about the US Presidency ever'. We wouldn't be using this as our catchy headline.

Instead, we tackled the artwork head-on, literally allowing the audience to get closer to every brushstroke in a Retina environment reminiscent of the gallery itself. This isn't a book, it's not a reference guide, it's a virtual visit to the gallery. Head straight to your President of interest or browse the full collection via the gallery's walls, delving further to discover the First Lady's portrait, historic documents, the contents of Abraham Lincoln's pockets, FDR's fireside radio broadcasts, 'Portrait in a Minute' video interviews or images of the Presidential pets.

But it's not all brush strokes and gilt frames. We took a light-hearted approach to learning about the facts behind the faces, with some interactive fun in the Games Room: test tantalising trivia, place the President with the quote and even play Presidential pairs by matching the leader to his First Lady. It's a fun way to learn and as we'll be adding more facts with future updates, the content will stay fresh. In four years, we'll even add another President!

But don't wait for another election, you can take part in a popularity contest via the app! We thought it would make an interesting feature to give you all the opportunity to vote for your favourite portrait so we gave each work of art a 'vote' button. The Leaderboard is illustrated live in the app and votes accumulate on our Facebook page to show the outside world if Washington, Lincoln or Kennedy's portrait is flavour (or flavor) of the month.

Our visit to Washington last month for Barack Obama's Inauguration gave us the perfect opportunity to launch the America's Presidents microsite so I'm not going to use any more pixels here when you can find out more there and download here for the promotional launch price of $4.99/€4.49/£2.99 to Celebrate President's Day.

It's great to finally write about a new app but you'd be forgiven for thinking we've been sat around with nothing to do for the past 12 months – our public launch (i)pad has been decidedly empty. Not so, we've been shut behind a wall of NDAs with some stunning clients and partners from Disney and Warner Music to Apple and Intel. There's a busy year ahead for Brandwidth and the wider technology industry and it remains entertaining and frustrating in equal measures as tech pundits speculate about the 'next big thing'.

Perhaps our next app should be The Vatican's Popes as that seems another hot topic right now...

Warning: Convergence ahead

In the future, we'll all be using a single device for work, rest and play – true? Well, the tech giants parading their goods at the recent IFA consumer electronics show believe they can deliver this technological utopia by the end of the year.

Sony, Toshiba, Samsung and Dell all revealed Windows 8 tablet/laptop hybrids with a combination of pens, rotating touch screens and keyboards. Great, one device fits all so this must be the future! Hold on, take a deep breath and stand back for a moment…

Apple's current line-up includes svelte laptops (slimline Airs and powerful MacBooks), the new slimmer, longer and faster iPhone5 and iPod Touch and the iPad family (more on that next month). They don't seem to be combining this lot into one device – far from it. Rather than build a single device that tries really hard to be everyone's friend like an enthusiastic puppy, they offer us a range of products that perform the best job in any given situation.

I remember clearly having an 'exchange of views' via LinkedIn prior to the launch of the first iPad. Someone had a strong opinion regarding the necessity of a stylus for the forthcoming tablet and how Apple couldn't afford to launch without one. My point was that the strength of the iPad would lie in its ability to work perfectly without the need for any extraneous peripherals – i.e. a stylus or keyboard. Both my hands feature built-in screen activation devices and the digital interpretation of a physical keyboard works effectively enough.

The iPad still functions beautifully without the need for extras and it certainly benefits from the additional weight and bulk saved. I've typed this whole article on my laptop and haven't once felt the need to touch the screen although I'd be happy to invest in a multitouch iMac (which designer wouldn't want a digital drawing board and hands up players looking for the ultimate gaming table).

The new iPod Touch is aimed firmly at the gaming market, likely to induce a final Nintendo DS death rattle and provide a superb touch and-tilt controller to accompany Apple devices across the range, from iPads to iMacs to Apple TV. More device sales, less convergence.

I'm not saying convergence isn't a good thing – it is. It's just that the technology we're being offered isn't up to the job. I want a smartphone that weighs less than my e-ink Kindle, folds out to the size of a tablet with a gestural table-top keyboard and the power of a laptop. Anything else is a compromise.

Nokia, Motorola and Amazon presented their latest devices this week and none of them were trying too hard to offer something their audiences don't want or need so they get brownie points for that. Nokia and Motorola however lose points (and $millions wiped of their share price) for showcasing hardware we can't actually buy yet.

This is just the beginning of the middle as we head deeper into gadget launch season. Nokia are still making phones, Amazon and Kobo have strengthened their positions in the e-Reader and tablet markets and laptop manufacturers are facing an identity crisis. Apple have shown their latest hand with another card in their back pocket for next month.

Design and innovation have key roles to play in this: Design = how it looks and feels, Innovation = how it works and empowers. Watch this space...

Welcome to The Future

I think I can safely say it’s been an incredible 12 months. Don’t take my word for it, we had 4 Apps of The Week, Number 1 apps in over 60 countries (including Books, Music and Games categories) and the chance to co-host a Tools of Change Ignite session... with myself.

I started the year by telling the audience at Digital Book World (DBW) “2010 was an exciting year for publishing. If it wasn’t for you, then you weren’t doing it right.”

Publishing upped its game in 2011 with the UK closing the gap on the US in terms of digital publishing output (both origination and development) but we’re not there yet.

A mere 20 months on from the launch of the iPad and many within publishing find themselves in a similar position to Apple’s rival device manufacturers. Samsung, HP, Sony & co stood back whilst Apple took the bold move to reveal a mass-market colour multitouch tablet. Many within publishing took a similar approach.

The plan to sit back and wait for the concept to come crashing down around Steve Jobs’ ears was never a wise one. Apple were gifted an unchallenged trading year in 2010 and built on this unassailable lead with the release of iPad2 in 2011.

We’ve spend the last 12 months working with some incredible individuals from the publishing world who took the decision to wholeheartedly embrace the future, rather than sit back then clamber over a forlorn hope.

Some of our notable publishing partners-in-crime include Dan Franklin and Jon Salt from Random House, Charles Catton from Amber Books and Amanda Moon from Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Just like Dominique Raccah, Henry Volans and Charlie Melcher, they got on and made great stuff. It’s not too late to learn from this but the clock is ticking.

Publishers who joined the ‘Apps will never catch on’ movement will always have ebooks to fall back on but we have entered an era where books are no longer the exclusive property of publishers. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – a developer can produce the next interactive War and a publisher could create the next Angry Birds. This is a level playing field.

Roles and rules are changing fast as we work with clients across many areas, from music to TV to FIlm where they have access to the audio and visual content publishers crave but shy away from for rights issues. These content creators now want to work with publishers to weave an effective narrative into their projects. It’s time to get you all round a table and start talking.

Speaking of speaking, I have spent 2011 telling the world about Brandwidth’s incredible end-to-end app programme and demonstrating the results. From London to New York via Bologna and Frankfurt, the message has remained the same – just get out there and make it happen. We’re not the flavour of the month (or the year) in the UK because we haven’t got a current story to tell about failure. We’ve had years to learn about what not to do, we’re now in the business of showing the world how to get it right.

We don’t follow a template, we don’t build to the lowest common denominator and we don’t make everything spin. Our award-winning folio of apps is testament to design and build that adds sympathetic digital value to incredible content for the most appropriate audience.

We launched Headspin: Storybook in October 2010, a popup book app published under Brandwidth’s own label, in the Games category. We combined the visual charm of the pop-up with a simple yet addictive gaming element to demonstrate how the digital format needs to add value. Apple thought we’d hit the mark and they chose Headspin as App of the Week and one of their ‘Best iPad Apps of 2010’, promoting it on every iPad in every Apple Store worldwide.

Our second App of the Week was awarded to our second Guinness World Records: At Your Fingertips. We held the number one position for iPad Book app over Christmas and New Year in over 50 countries. A nice sequel to our original award-winning GWR app, launched on the same day as the iPad.

2011 saw our Top 100 Albums app launch for Amber Books and reach the top spot in the Music category, demonstrating that a book isn’t always a book... when it’s an app. We’ve continued to add life to this incredible project throughout 2011, with the latest update just in time for Christmas.

Our summer release was under the Brandwidth label and I’ve covered this in a previous post. F:sh is a digital interpretation of the children’s book and we played with accelerometer control, the integrated camera and audio interaction, combined with one continuous scene to break with the convention of ‘regular’ page turning.

September saw the launch of Journey to The Exoplanets for FSG/Scientific American. We were presented with an opportunity to combine the in-depth knowledge of author Ed Bell and Ron Miller’s incredible illustrations. The result was an app that took the basic elements of a reference book but brought the concept to life with the ability to create your own Exoplanet or place yourself on a planet’s surface, whilst retaining the original 10,000 word reading experience. App of the Week status, a number one hit in the US and UK, a Lovie Award and FWA App of The Day were proof that there’s life in the space category yet!

Our next launch, another App of the Week, was the spectacular Doctor Who Encyclopedia for Random House and BBC Books. We once again proved there’s enormous potential within digital reference material, with over 3,000 entries contained within the ultimate interactive resource for the last three Doctors. There are some fun updates to follow in 2012.

We rounded the year off with a bit of iPhone fun (unless you’re not a fan) with our Michael Bublé Christmas App for Warner Music. Don’t hold it against us, apps provide a valuable link to downloadable content and we’re in the marketing business.

If you’re not yet convinced apps are here to stay then ask yourself “do we need software?” If the answer is “no” then you’re blissfully unaware of the world around you. Apps are a form of packaging for software, the platforms provide the delivery mechanism, the hardware offers a place to live – or a virtual bookshelf.

So, what’s next? Automotive, finance and music apps are all on the books for 2012, with plenty of publishing thrown in. Too much focus in any one area results in virtual blinkers and these diverse sectors have a lot to learn from each other as they’ll all be competing for the same territory next year.

We’re very excited about the potential for The Numinous Place, our first foray into the world of enhanced fiction. We’re working with Mark Staufer to bring his novel to life in ways that appeal to keen readers, experienced app users and cinema-goers. No mean feat but an incredible challenge nonetheless.

You’ll also witness apps making a successful transition to the big screen, or at least the bigger screen. 2012 is the year TV becomes relevant again.

I’m not merely referring to watching TV as we’re already doing this across a number of mobile devices and PCs, I’m talking about the main screen at the centre of the house, the one we all used to sit around.

Connected TV will provide a seamless path to and from the big box. We’ll discover apps on mobile devices that offer additional enhancement when used with a TV. We’ll also discover apps via TV programmes providing either connected interactivity or download opportunities with the ability to sync to other mobile devices for use later. Both Apple and Google are on the case to make this work, however the relevant market for paid-for content will remain on Apple’s iOS devices for the foreseeable future.

There, I said it – discoverability. As TV ads receive less viewers (we all FFWD through them) and sponsored programming offers little more than a branding opportunity, there needs to be another path to consumers.

Get ready for app icons to replace the familiar ‘red button’ in the corner of a screen and brace yourselves for icons embedded within your EPG.

Now tell me apps won’t last and they can all be replaced with links to HTML5 websites. Appy Christmas.

Making (micro)waves with F:sh

It’s my daughter’s sixth birthday today. Olivia was born in Banbury hospital as I sat in the delivery room working on my laptop on a pitch for the Guinness World Records account. You could say I was a considerate parent preparing her for life with a workaholic. You could say a number of less complimentary things.

At the time of the GWR pitch, I was running the London creative agency Fijit with the very talented Neil Mathieson. One of our specialities was character creation for the likes of Jim Henson, the BBC and the Discovery Channel. F:sh was one such project kick-started as a showcase for potential cartoon fun.

Nothing became of this single illustrated concept and it languished in our ‘what might have been’ pile. Time and concepts passed, with thoughts turning away from the potential for an animated series to the possibility of a printed children’s book. Another nice idea but one without the time available to bring the plans to fruition.

Fast forward to 2010. The iPad launches and Brandwidth is at the forefront of pioneering app development for this new large scale iPhone ideally suited to digital publishing – the perfect platform for children’s book characters.

If you think that making apps is simple, then the chances are you’re just making simple apps – not successful ones. There has been a lot said about apps in the past six months such as “don’t spend a lot – you’ll never make your money back”, “don’t let developers tell you apps are a complicated business” and “there’s no future in apps, what’s next?”

Let me counter those statements by describing the way we approached F:sh as a project:

“Don’t spend a lot – you’ll never make your money back”

​We dedicated about three weeks of artworking and programming for F:sh to function universally across all Apple devices – iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch.

It’s true that we wanted F:sh to be a showcase of our in-house talents and there are a number of additional features and effects we could have included. We made the conscious decision to use this app to showcase not just our creative skills, but also our strategic and organisational abilities as well as strict time management and cost control.

The feature-set is as much about what we left out as what we put in. Many children’s book apps include a bewildering array of interactive elements that seem to have come from a client’s wish list, with every box checked. We avoided unnecessary colouring activities, games and digital distractions. Every interactive feature within F:sh is there because it adds to the narrative rather than detracting from it.

The focus remains on storytelling as F:sh takes advantage of the digital format by introducing a continuous journey through the book where the reader scrolls from left to right, or up and down at one stage to reveal the next part of the story.

The main characters move seamlessly from one ‘scene’ to the next following the narrative and introducing more characters and situations as the story progresses. At key stages the reader is prompted to interact with various elements and in some instances a specific activity such as shouting at the screen prompts the story to continue.

We added a simple yet effective feature to the app – virtual water, where the surface of the sea tilts to match the angle of the device, with the characters bobbing around as if floating within the screen. We built the F:sh website to take advantage of the same accelerometer control and act as a preview of the feature when viewed on an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch.

Printed children’s books have always encouraged the reader to add their own name to the first page, for that personal touch. With apps no longer constrained by ink on paper, a child can not only add their name but also their photograph – either directly on iPad2 or iPhone, or from the photo album on iPad1 or iPod Touch.

For F:sh, we extended this feature by taking that picture and adding it to the story where the photograph from the introduction page makes a surprise reappearance in the final scene as Groober pilots his submarine into view with the child’s face looking through the porthole. Change the photo over and over to keep the book feeling fresh and encourage repeat reading, with the end scene as a reward for completing the story.

“Don’t let developers tell you apps are a complicated business”

With three weeks to develop the app, it wasn’t the build that proved complicated. The meticulous planning and creation of each screen ahead of scheduled production is where many more hours are dedicated. The attention to detail and thought behind the app is where the genuine value lies. With all illustration, design, writing, music and narration generated in-house, we haven’t just repurposed an out-of-copyright classic.

Neatly sandwiching the development is the post-approval targeted promotion of the app via social networks, traditional PR channels and ongoing support via established relationships with Apple and other key players.

“There’s no future in apps, what’s next?”

What’s next? A missed opportunity if you’re not on board. If you still think apps are a passing craze then apply your twisted logic to the music industry. The digital music file is here to stay in much the same way that the app will be around for many years – it’s the hardware that will change, not the format. The way to keep ahead is to be on board now, not standing by the sidelines hoping the app train will pull in at your station.

Publishers are witnessing the erosion of their territory by developers who are grasping apps by the balls and just getting on with it. F:sh is one such example.

I clearly have a very understanding family and they have endured many long working days to get this far but I hope F:sh stands as a visual testament to their inspiration and support. Happy birthday Olivia.

Originally published on The Literary Platform July 7th 2011

F:sh is available on the App Store or via iTunes