One key decision we made was to eliminate graphics throughout the entire publication. We decided that every byte used for a graphic (even if it was our own logo) could be better utilized downloading more content. For example, by not forcing a user to download a logo, those spare bytes could be used for an extra article or … advertising. Since we rely on revenue from these journals to pay our rent and to quench my DVD fetish, we wanted to make sure advertising was designed in. Most other "optimized" AvantGo sites include logo pictures and others - we just felt it didn't buy enough to trade for the extra bytes consumed.

Because of the way ZENPRESS works, when we create a Web-based issue of one of our magazines, ZENPRESS also creates a mobile version of the whole publication suitable for downloading to a handheld device, reformatting and changing the way the content is structured for that environment. For example, rather than downloading images used in figures, ZENPRESS generates a line that says the figure is available on the Web site, like that shown in Figure A (don't get confused - Figure A shows a picture of a Figure A).

FIGURE A


The handheld version generates a figure element without the actual graphic, saving space on the device and download time. Roll over picture for a larger image.

We also had to figure out what to do about advertisers (and I'm not sure we're fully there yet). As you can see when reading one of our publications online, we have both banner ads (which are graphic images) and text ads, which are made up of just words. Right now, we've developed a sponsors page on the handheld. This lists all our sponsors and their URLs. They're ordered by the prominence of the ad they purchased in the online publication. So, for example, advertisers who've bought home page ads (which are our most expensive) are on the top, while advertisers who've bought article ads (which are our least expensive) are on the bottom.

While we're on the topic of advertising, let's discuss it a bit more from a marketing perspective.

Handheld-based advertising
I think I finally understand why a traditional media company would feel uneasy about a new media. We know, for example, that traditional print publishers have been somewhat uneasy about "that darn Internet thang" while companies like ZATZ, built around the Internet, find it second nature. You see, we just expanded into a new media: mobile devices. And while it's exciting, it's also virgin territory.

This week (I'm writing this the week of August 16, 1999), we launched The ZATZ Mobile Network, the world's first mobile magazine network. The announcement was picked up by the AP and business briefs were published in hundreds of newspapers throughout the country. The idea behind the ZATZ Mobile Network is that every magazine we produce is not only available online, it can also be downloaded to your Palm organizer or a Windows CE-based device. This allows you to read our publications everywhere -- you no longer need to be tethered to a keyboard and monitor.