BRM Live - something COMPLETELY different!

[James]

It's a new development; an innovation. Innovations are not necessarily available to all initially but if they're successful their availability spreads. It's a starting point.

Innovation is good but I can have a magazine a work with no come back, if I read the new BRM Live at work I could loose my job!

 

Will BRM Live be a stand alone product or will an issue of BRM Live be like an expanded copy of the concurrent BRM?

[Nile]

We are always monitoring Android sales and when sales increase, we'll certainly look at producing BRM Live (and subsequent interactive titles) for the Android market as well.

 

Sorry.

 

Steve

 

As your magazine is digitally available through pocketmags (a multi platform system) do you actually have any way of knowing the split between ipad/android/desktop users?

[SteveCole]

Innovation is good but I can have a magazine a work with no come back, if I read the new BRM Live at work I could loose my job!

 

Will BRM Live be a stand alone product or will an issue of BRM Live be like an expanded copy of the concurrent BRM?

 

BRM Live is a completely stand alone product.

 

As your magazine is digitally available through pocketmags (a multi platform system) do you actually have any way of knowing the split between ipad/android/desktop users?

 

Hi Nile,

 

Yes, we work closely with Pocketmags to determine what devices are used.

 

Steve

[James]

BRM Live is a completely stand alone product.

Is this likely to dilute BRM itself though?

 

I'd hope not.

[The Stationmaster]

Having now seen it at Ally Pally I was quite impressed because it has some very good features and has clearly ben carefully thought through as it has been developed.  On the size of screen Steve was using for the demo the pictures were clear and bright and wearing specs the text was legible without any problems for me (I wear 2.5 dioptre specs for reading nowadays).  The ability to turn some of the views through a full 360 degrees was a great idea - no great shakes in computing terms but no magazines that I can think of allow you to do that while looking at a diorama or a loco.

 

So yes - I liked it and I think it might well represent one future route for model railway publishing because it can do so much more than not just an ordinary print magazine but it also goes well beyond the usual form of electronic copy of a magazine.  But you do need an iPad of course - now if Warners were to do a special deal I think I'd be signing up (especially if it also included the free airbrush as well ).

[trisonic]

And it is good for us transcontinental types that otherwise wait forever for printed copies. We need the ability to read on many more devices though.

 

I'm an Apple guy but can't stand the Ipad, I use the small Kindle Fire because it is convenient and yet has a better screen.

 

I want the ability to be able to read it on everything that I own.

 

Best, Pete.

[SteveCole]

Thanks for your comments Mike. As you probably guessed, we're really happy with BRM Live and there's still a lot more to do before it's officially launched next month.

 

It is unfortunate that, at the moment, it's iPad only but the number of sales on other devices doesn't make it commercially viable... yet!

 

If you're visiting the Ally Pally Show today, please come along to the BRM stand and ask for a demo.

 

Steve

[SteveCole]

Here's a quick snapshot of the BRM Live front cover. Please note that County Gate isn't included in the first issue of BRM Live. We'll be saving that for a future issue.

 

[Kenton]

 

Yes, we work closely with Pocketmags to determine what devices are used.

 

So that statistic is very sample biased to start with. As I and probably many others would not give Pocetmags air room.

 

 

However, I'll not pass any comment on this venture other than I would not support it if it detracted from or removed funding from RMWeb.

 

I understand the "alliance" with Apple iPad particularly as a starting point. I can see why BRM see this as an innovation though I can't quite see what is SO "innovative" for the reader. I guess it will be a long time before I actually get the chance to view it to pass real judgement.

[Andy Y]

However, I'll not pass any comment on this venture other than I would not support it if it detracted from or removed funding from RMWeb.

 

How in any God's name do you arrive at these sorts of speculative conclusion?

[Kenton]

 

How in any God's name do you arrive at these sorts of speculative conclusion?

I guess it was easy really.

 

BRM only has so much money to invest in new and ongoing development projects (like any business). It was therefore quite logical to suppose that funding my be redirected from one venture to another - and even more possible if the content is seriously innovative and quite different.

 

As said I cannot comment on the content - I have not seen it, don't have an iPad so am unlikely to ever see it (until it is deemed a resounding success to move it on to other platforms)

 

 

If this is a success I do see it taking away some footfall from the standard magazine and potentially RMWeb. After all there is only so much time at our disposal for such things.

 

I am not being negative, simply realistic. It joins an already pretty crowded marketplace and on the description alone is already quite self limiting. It is going to have to be judged better than most of the rest by its readership not by those in marketing it.

[Guest Phil]

BRM Live is a completely stand alone product.

  

Steve

Is this likely to dilute BRM itself though?

 

I'd hope not.

I can understand your concerns James, and the bit I don't get is - if it is a stand alone product, why confuse punters by using the name from the magazine ? It certainly sounds more like a replacement for, rather than a stand alone product to me.

 

As I said earlier, I wish BRM Live all the best, and maybe hope it will be released on BB sometime.

[The Stationmaster]

I think it's not really very fair to comment without having seen it Kenton (apart from any comments about distributors who you obviously seem to know something about).  I'm very much a confirmed 'I like the look and feel of paper in my hand' merchant so I always tend to be sceptical about the bells & whistles claims for the latest electronic whatever.

 

However I had a good look at this yesterday and could immediately some of he big advantages it offers compared with a print magazine.  It might or might not not be the latest thing in the world of 'magazine computing' or whatever it's called but it is a massive step forward from the capabilities of an ordinary print magazine and it appears to exploit quite well some of the things the medium offers with a useful 'interactive' element which also delivers so handy features.  As the appeal of print falls away from many folk who have been weaned on and grown up with screens and touch pads and whatever I can see it as a logical development - one that might well keep Warners/BRM in a changing market and still be able to support RMweb as printed magazine readership continues to decline.