9 replies to this topic

[Ted Florence]

So many of you have already seen the Avenza PDF Maps app for iOS devices that enables the use of geospatial PDFs, geoPDFs and now geotiffs on iOS devices (iPhones, iPads, iPod Touches), allowing locating, measuring, waypoint creation and much more.

Well, the next stage of this project is almost complete, that being an iBooks/iTunes -like purchase and delivery system for digital maps. Just like we can now all purchase books and music directly into our mobile devices, we will soon be able to obtain geo-enabled maps the same way, whether for free or for a small price.

If you have been looking for a way to evolve your map distribution into the 21st electronic environment, this is the answer. If you have been struggling with diminishing paper map sales in a digital world and are looking for a way to re-purpose your existing map assets, this is the answer. Many mapping applications now support geospatial PDF and almost all support geotiff export so the effort required to generate a map that can be used this way is not tremendous at all. And, while certainly the Adobe Creative Suite environment with MAPublisher or Geographic Imager (or both) will produce the best results, it is not at all required that these products be used.

There is now a preview video available here that demonstrates exactly what we are talking about.

Regards
Ted

[David Medeiros]

Very cool. I've been wondering about just such an enterprise. Can you elaborate on licensing and profit sharing issues... Who owns the maps offered through this service? Will Avenza set prices or the map author? How will authors collect sales etc.?

David

[Jimbo]

You know I came across the stylesheets video & considering that there has been changes in 8.4; it should be updated to show that. Otherwise those people who will watch that video will get the nasty surprise as they can not find stylesheets initially & only by trial and error come across "Map Themes." Even in that case the new interface & additions will confuse the new user.

[Ted Florence]

Thanks for pointing that out. We have since changed the info on the Stylesheets video to reflect the versions to which it applies.
Ted

You know I came across the stylesheets video & considering that there has been changes in 8.4; it should be updated to show that. Otherwise those people who will watch that video will get the nasty surprise as they can not find stylesheets initially & only by trial and error come across "Map Themes." Even in that case the new interface & additions will confuse the new user.

[Ted Florence]

Hi David and thanks for your comments and questions. So here we go:

1. The maps will always be owned by their respective publishers, authors or designers as the case may be for each one. No different than the record companies or movie studios continuing to own their content that is sold through iTunes.

2. All pricing will be set by the publishers. Avenza does not want to dictate pricing or selling policies. All we are doing is providing a sales channel to the digital device market.

3. All transactions will be done through in-app purchase via the PDF Maps app. The funds will be collected by Apple and after they take their cut Avenza will receive the balance which will be forwarded to the publisher, less Avenza's share. We have thought carefully about this and decided on the Apple in-app purchase scenario because

• purchases can be made easily directly in the app
• we do not want to handle 1000's of small credit card transactions
• doing so enables iTunes cards and account balances to be used to buy maps
• it answers the security issue of preventing maps from being illegally shared as they'd be tied to an iTunes account just like music and apps are

Any other questions or thoughts?

Ted

Very cool. I've been wondering about just such an enterprise. Can you elaborate on licensing and profit sharing issues... Who owns the maps offered through this service? Will Avenza set prices or the map author? How will authors collect sales etc.?

David

[David Medeiros]

Hi David and thanks for your comments and questions. So here we go:

1. The maps will always be owned by their respective publishers, authors or designers as the case may be for each one. No different than the record companies or movie studios continuing to own their content that is sold through iTunes.

2. All pricing will be set by the publishers. Avenza does not want to dictate pricing or selling policies. All we are doing is providing a sales channel to the digital device market.

3. All transactions will be done through in-app purchase via the PDF Maps app. The funds will be collected by Apple and after they take their cut Avenza will receive the balance which will be forwarded to the publisher, less Avenza's share. We have thought carefully about this and decided on the Apple in-app purchase scenario because

• purchases can be made easily directly in the app
• we do not want to handle 1000's of small credit card transactions
• doing so enables iTunes cards and account balances to be used to buy maps
• it answers the security issue of preventing maps from being illegally shared as they'd be tied to an iTunes account just like music and apps are

Any other questions or thoughts?

Ted

Very cool. I've been wondering about just such an enterprise. Can you elaborate on licensing and profit sharing issues... Who owns the maps offered through this service? Will Avenza set prices or the map author? How will authors collect sales etc.?

David

Thanks Ted,

This really sounds interesting. I like the security and convenience the iTunes model affords, it will be interesting to see how it works in practice. Definitely provides motivation to move on a few small projects and try this out.

I am still curious about the specifics of how the profit sharing breaks down though. Given an example map sales price of say $4.99 (everything on iTunes seems to end in 99 cents) what's the break down in fee's collected by Apple and Avenza and what is returned to the publisher?

Will Avenza forward the publishers share of each map sale one at a time or pool the amounts until a certain amount is reached (a la Zazzle and Maps.com)?

Thanks for the information.

[Ted Florence]

All the terms haven't been ironed out just yet but if you give me a call (416-487-5116) I'd be happy to run through it with you.
Cheeers
Ted

Hi David and thanks for your comments and questions. So here we go:

1. The maps will always be owned by their respective publishers, authors or designers as the case may be for each one. No different than the record companies or movie studios continuing to own their content that is sold through iTunes.

2. All pricing will be set by the publishers. Avenza does not want to dictate pricing or selling policies. All we are doing is providing a sales channel to the digital device market.

3. All transactions will be done through in-app purchase via the PDF Maps app. The funds will be collected by Apple and after they take their cut Avenza will receive the balance which will be forwarded to the publisher, less Avenza's share. We have thought carefully about this and decided on the Apple in-app purchase scenario because

• purchases can be made easily directly in the app
• we do not want to handle 1000's of small credit card transactions
• doing so enables iTunes cards and account balances to be used to buy maps
• it answers the security issue of preventing maps from being illegally shared as they'd be tied to an iTunes account just like music and apps are

Any other questions or thoughts?

Ted

Very cool. I've been wondering about just such an enterprise. Can you elaborate on licensing and profit sharing issues... Who owns the maps offered through this service? Will Avenza set prices or the map author? How will authors collect sales etc.?

David

Thanks Ted,

This really sounds interesting. I like the security and convenience the iTunes model affords, it will be interesting to see how it works in practice. Definitely provides motivation to move on a few small projects and try this out.

I am still curious about the specifics of how the profit sharing breaks down though. Given an example map sales price of say $4.99 (everything on iTunes seems to end in 99 cents) what's the break down in fee's collected by Apple and Avenza and what is returned to the publisher?

Will Avenza forward the publishers share of each map sale one at a time or pool the amounts until a certain amount is reached (a la Zazzle and Maps.com)?

Thanks for the information.

[David Medeiros]

Hi Ted,

I haven't had a chance to give you a call about this yet, but I have begun work on small map I'd like to eventually have sold through the Avenza Map Store. Do you have any updates for us on how the store will work, where to submit products, what the Apple and Avenza fee's will be etc?

Thanks,

David

All the terms haven't been ironed out just yet but if you give me a call (416-487-5116) I'd be happy to run through it with you.
Cheeers
Ted

Hi David and thanks for your comments and questions. So here we go:

1. The maps will always be owned by their respective publishers, authors or designers as the case may be for each one. No different than the record companies or movie studios continuing to own their content that is sold through iTunes.

2. All pricing will be set by the publishers. Avenza does not want to dictate pricing or selling policies. All we are doing is providing a sales channel to the digital device market.

3. All transactions will be done through in-app purchase via the PDF Maps app. The funds will be collected by Apple and after they take their cut Avenza will receive the balance which will be forwarded to the publisher, less Avenza's share. We have thought carefully about this and decided on the Apple in-app purchase scenario because

• purchases can be made easily directly in the app
• we do not want to handle 1000's of small credit card transactions
• doing so enables iTunes cards and account balances to be used to buy maps
• it answers the security issue of preventing maps from being illegally shared as they'd be tied to an iTunes account just like music and apps are

Any other questions or thoughts?

Ted

Very cool. I've been wondering about just such an enterprise. Can you elaborate on licensing and profit sharing issues... Who owns the maps offered through this service? Will Avenza set prices or the map author? How will authors collect sales etc.?

David

Thanks Ted,

This really sounds interesting. I like the security and convenience the iTunes model affords, it will be interesting to see how it works in practice. Definitely provides motivation to move on a few small projects and try this out.

I am still curious about the specifics of how the profit sharing breaks down though. Given an example map sales price of say $4.99 (everything on iTunes seems to end in 99 cents) what's the break down in fee's collected by Apple and Avenza and what is returned to the publisher?

Will Avenza forward the publishers share of each map sale one at a time or pool the amounts until a certain amount is reached (a la Zazzle and Maps.com)?

Thanks for the information.

[Ted Florence]

call me and we'll chat about it.
Ted

Hi Ted,

I haven't had a chance to give you a call about this yet, but I have begun work on small map I'd like to eventually have sold through the Avenza Map Store. Do you have any updates for us on how the store will work, where to submit products, what the Apple and Avenza fee's will be etc?

Thanks,

David

All the terms haven't been ironed out just yet but if you give me a call (416-487-5116) I'd be happy to run through it with you.
Cheeers
Ted

Hi David and thanks for your comments and questions. So here we go:

1. The maps will always be owned by their respective publishers, authors or designers as the case may be for each one. No different than the record companies or movie studios continuing to own their content that is sold through iTunes.

2. All pricing will be set by the publishers. Avenza does not want to dictate pricing or selling policies. All we are doing is providing a sales channel to the digital device market.

3. All transactions will be done through in-app purchase via the PDF Maps app. The funds will be collected by Apple and after they take their cut Avenza will receive the balance which will be forwarded to the publisher, less Avenza's share. We have thought carefully about this and decided on the Apple in-app purchase scenario because

• purchases can be made easily directly in the app
• we do not want to handle 1000's of small credit card transactions
• doing so enables iTunes cards and account balances to be used to buy maps
• it answers the security issue of preventing maps from being illegally shared as they'd be tied to an iTunes account just like music and apps are

Any other questions or thoughts?

Ted

Very cool. I've been wondering about just such an enterprise. Can you elaborate on licensing and profit sharing issues... Who owns the maps offered through this service? Will Avenza set prices or the map author? How will authors collect sales etc.?

David

Thanks Ted,

This really sounds interesting. I like the security and convenience the iTunes model affords, it will be interesting to see how it works in practice. Definitely provides motivation to move on a few small projects and try this out.

I am still curious about the specifics of how the profit sharing breaks down though. Given an example map sales price of say $4.99 (everything on iTunes seems to end in 99 cents) what's the break down in fee's collected by Apple and Avenza and what is returned to the publisher?

Will Avenza forward the publishers share of each map sale one at a time or pool the amounts until a certain amount is reached (a la Zazzle and Maps.com)?

Thanks for the information.

[David Medeiros]

Will do, I'll try to get in touch later today or tomorrow AM. Thanks Ted.

call me and we'll chat about it.
Ted