Magazines, Content Owners, & Publishers - It's Your Time to Thrive

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I spent this week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Besides being an amazingly beautiful city, I attended many incredible meetings. For my work in digital publishing, attendance was key in order to determine how the magazine industry doesn't just remain relevant in technology but how it can thrive.

The future is very bright for anyone in the original content creation space, especially magazines. Here were my top five takeaways that anyone involved with content should pay attention to:

1. The future is here. And it takes at least two years to do anything. Lock in your plans now. Have you seen the home of the future? Check it out. In the technology innovation space, partners are locking down content partners now to work on game-changing programs they expect to launch in 2015 or later. Now is the time to build your alliances. In fact, if you haven't started yet, you might be late.
2. Content drives differentiation for the technology industry. When you walk through 8.1 halls of a conference center, filled with devices of all sizes, everything starts to blur. They all start to look the same. The differentiator is the content installed onto the devices, and the user experience with them. Technology companies don't just want us, they need us. Be smart and you can capitalize on this in a very strong manner.
3. Developers are your friends. In this new world, the device manufacturer's development team better be your best friend, or you are missing out. Outside of content differentiation, the experience is paramount. So make the most of it. There is no way your team will be able to know every nuance that the technology manufacturer supports. The great news is that today, most technology companies aren't just willing to help you gain that insight, they need it to survive.
4. Don't be a tightwad. So many partners I met with commented that many publishers are not willing to share incredible or exclusive offers in exchange for promotion. Don't be a tightwad! Pre-installs do not guarantee success. You will need to be creative and think out of the box.
5. Yes, you need an app. While the HTML5 versus app debate continues, don't get caught in the fray. Build an app that you can use for testing. It will be well worth it within six months of launch.

Well, there you have it. My top five list. What do you think?

If you were fortunate enough to attend the Mobile World Congress feel free to share your thoughts and comments here so others can enjoy it.

If you weren't able to make it to MWC this year, you can see some of the highlight moments here.