The Economist comes to the App Store

The full issue of The Economist is available through In App Purchase each week beginning Thursday evenings (9pm GMT/4pm EST).

Digital and print subscribers can receive full and unrestricted access to The Economist on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch as well as The Economist online by simply using their print or online subscription credentials.

Once downloaded, each issue is stored on the user's device, making it possible to read the newspaper in full without an internet connection. Each issue also features the full audio edition, with all articles read by professional newscasters.

John Micklethwait, editor-in-chief, said: "We have reformatted the newspaper to make the most of iPad, iPhone and iPod touch while retaining the familiar feel of The Economist, with all the articles, charts, maps and images from each week's print edition. In addition, we have integrated our audio edition, read by professional newscasters, for easy switching between reading and listening. We have put a lot of work into making sure that these new versions of the paper are not just easy to use, but also make our readers feel at home."

Growing print circulation

Oscar Grut, managing director, digital editions said: "We have a growing print circulation of 1.5m. We expect to reach similar numbers with our digital offerings in a relatively short period of time. iPads and iPhones are perfect for reading and listening to The Economist, and we see a great future for our ever-growing readership in all media. We have created elegant apps that capture the reading experience our readers enjoy so much in print, free from distractions. Our apps are also a great way for new readers to sample the paper, with a number of free articles each week selected by the editor. We hope many of those new readers will go on to subscribe to the full weekly edition.

The Economist App for iPhone and App for iPad are available for free from the App Store on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch, or at www.itunes.com/appstore. Single issues can be purchased for $5.99/£3.49 /€4.99 (about R35) each week through In App Purchase. Subscription prices can be found at www.economist.com/subscriptions.

The apps were built for The Economist by AgaveApps (iPhone) and TigerSpike (iPad).