Apple News launched in UK with 14 newspaper and magazine partners

23 Oct 2015

With its News app, which launched in Europe, Apple has brought the service to millions of iPad and iPhone users through its iOS 9.1 update.

Using the app, readers can share the articles on social media and news outlets can put their links to their website in the Apple News stories.

Apple News aggregates content from titles including the BBC, The Telegraph, The Guardian, Sun and Sky News and present them in a single app that would replace the built-in newsstand app as part of the iOS 9.1 update.

Magazine publishers Top Gear, Vanity Fair, the Radio Times, and Cosmopolitan are also included.

Users would be able to read full stories from the current day's news, covering news, sport, celebs and more.

The app has a very simple interface, with articles formatted to work with the iPhone or iPad screen.

According to commentators, Apple News comes  at a time when publishers were concerned about ceding power to larger organisations who controlle the distribution of content.

Big tech companies, such as Apple, Facebook, and Google were all looking to help publishers reach a larger audience, which, in turn, created a dependency.

According to Apple, the service aimed to be a single-stop news aggregation service so that users would not need to flick between multiple apps or mobile sites.

''Apple News collects all the stories you want to read, from top news sources, based on topics you're most interested in - so you no longer need to move from app to app to stay informed,'' said an Apple spokesman.

The app, available for UK iPhone and iPad users  in an iOS 9.1 update, replaces the former Apple Newsstand service.

According to Trinity Mirror, it was putting 27 of its national and regional titles on service, including the The Mirror, Daily Record, Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo.

''The ways consumers access content and news is changing hugely with digital advancements, highlighting the need for traditional media owners to ensure they adapt with consumers,'' said Chris Russell, product director at Trinity Mirror, The Guardian reported.