I’m just returning from an exciting, announcement filled week at AdobeMax, where the final moments of the event were punctuated by the sad news of Steve Jobs passing (with alerts coming through on – of course – our iPhones). It was a surreal experience to be in the company of so many of his admirers, as the news rippled through the venue. His impact on publishing and technology was visible through almost every aspect of the event. In many ways, it left us with an immediate and very tangible way to recognize the broad reach of his life’s work.

The iPad. The Adobe® Digital Publishing Suite has been out since May, and the impact of the solution on the iPad is astounding. There are over 1,000 DPS-created apps available, on over 9 million iPads sold to date, with over 6 million downloads. Take the average $3.99 per issue and do the math.

Publishers are seeing per-issue downloads in the six figures. Expect that to increase. This week, Adobe announced the Digital Publishing Suite Single Edition, answering requests from smaller publishers, non-profits and boutique agencies to be able to get THEIR apps out there too. Look for this in November.

Adobe also announced a suite of Touch Apps that bring the Adobe Creative apps to the iPad and the Cloud, presenting the opportunity for a more seamless, always available, creative environment. This one is a mind-bender and it will be very interesting to see how creatives push this even further. Think ideation; sketching; mood boards; website and mobile app prototyping; and presenting finished work – really pushing the potential of the iPad.

Of course many of these Adobe apps would never have existed if not for the creative momentum generated by the Mac itself, as it catapulted us into a new paradigm of desktop publishing, pixels, fonts, image formats (for those of you old enough to remember). So many tools and technologies can attribute their roots to the creative impact of the Mac and Apple. Not to mention careers.

So a bittersweet end to the week as we reflect on the marvel of Apple, and Steve.

Thanks for all you’ve done for us, Steve, and thanks for leaving behind such a rich legacy that we can carry forward with us. You’ve changed so many lives forever.

Posted by: Margot Knorr Mancini

Margot Knorr Mancini
A thought leader in the publishing industry, Margot Knorr Mancini has helped numerous publishers redefine their missions to become nimble content generators with the ability to repurpose content easily and efficiently. As Founder & CEO of Technology for Publishing, her analytical mind allows her to remain a step ahead of the industry, recognizing early trends and developing pivotal best practices.
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