TORONTO—Consumers are absorbing more content through tablets than from print, according to Stephen Hart, who oversees digital publishing solutions at Adobe Systems.

Stats he presented during RGD DesignThinkers in Toronto last week show 29% of readers spend 10 to 30 minutes per visit on a digital issue, while 10% spend 30 to 60 minutes. Also, the more interactive content, the longer the reader stays on each page; 48% of interactive elements in apps are selected or played at least once, he explained.

"Consumers see a distinction between a website and a well-designed publication on a tablet," he said.


Ads get noticed more in digital issues than on the web, and ads account for 20% of content views in digital publishing apps, he added. On top of that, 46% of U.S. tablet owners think tablet-based ads are relevant or interesting.

There's more opportunity to monetize digital editions through an app than a web version, said Hart. Stats he presented show 68% of tablet content is paid for and 27% of digital content is consumed by print subscribers, which means publishers can tap into their existing print audience to drive digital readership while maintaining the print product.

The tablet market is poised to grow: 57% of U.S. consumers expect to buy a tablet in the next three years, said Hart.

Adobe was early into the tablet publishing game, working with U.S. publishing giant Condé Nast to develop a tablet edition for Wired magazine even before the tablet was readily available on the market.

"We were working blindly," he said.