The FT launches a Weekend web app

One of the interesting things to surface in the work Neil & I did with the FT last summer was how different the readership for the paper is at the weekend. It looked like there might be an opportunity there.

Well, it appears that the Financial Times is making moves to capitalise on that:

FT Weekend readers can from today access content through the new FT Weekend app, a mobile-first proposition built as part of the FT’s award-winning HTML5 web app. The app is launching across iOS, Android and Windows 8 devices, and will come with a standalone subscription after the first free month which is supported by Swiss watch manufacturer Ulysse Nardin.

I’ve re-added the web app shortcut to my iPad this morning. The Weekend section is quite lovely, with a real magazine feel. The performance is slightly stuttery on my ageing iPad 3, but it’s a pleasant reading experience. Once again I’m reminded of how little difference there can be between a web and native app, once you launch it from an icon…

I can’t justify the cost of a full FT subscription as part of my work, but I’ll happily pay for the Weekend content. There’s some excellent journalism published there, and I’m looking forwards to digging through it.