The Daily, News Corp’s tablet news reader app, will no longer be iPad-only. A deal has been struck with Verizon to pre-install an Android version of the app on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 this month, with more Verizon Android devices to receive The Daily in the future. Verizon customers will get week’s free trial of the app before the $4 a week / $40 a year subscription cost kicks in. This distribution deal could significantly increase The Daily’s readership and sales by relieving Android users from having to go out and download it.
Existing Galaxy Tab 10.1 users will receive the app bundled with a software update this month, while new buyers will see it on their home screens. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 7.7 has been confirmed as one of the next devices to come with The Daily pre-installed. The Daily hit 1 million downloads in May about 4 months after launch, and was the 3rd highest grossing iPad app of 2011 without being pre-installed. This bodes well for the Android sales from this distribution deal.
There’s no word from News Corp as to when or if Android device owners on other carriers will gain access to The Daily. Presumably if the app has been successfully ported to Android, the only thing stopping wider distribution is an exclusivity deal with Verizon. The iPad exclusivity deal lasted about a year, so it could be 6 months or a year before AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers gain access to Murdoch’s news reader.