The Straits Times will be consolidating its digital offerings in June, progressively moving some of the content of the ST Star E-books app into the newspaper's website.
Since June 2014, The Straits Times Star E-books app has been home to topics-based e-books and The Life, a regular digital magazine featuring style, design, pursuits, travel and food.
ST Star E-books publications, of which 37 have been released, are notable for their highly visual and interactive content. They showcase the newsroom's coverage on a wide range of issues in a creative, multimedia format, and have won numerous in-house and international awards.
The app has been downloaded globally more than 270,000 times.
But in the rapidly changing media landscape, ST has decided to focus on boosting its website offerings and enhancing the experience of its mobile readers.
Straits Times Editor Warren Fernandez said: "Our Star e-book app has won awards locally and internationally. But many readers tell us they want content on Web-based and mobile platforms.
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HOW TO DOWNLOAD
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Up till June 9: How to download the ST Star E-books app and its publications
• Go to the Apple App Store or Google Play store on your iPad or Android device. The app is not available for iPhones.
• Search for "The Straits Times Star" and download The Straits Times Star E-books app.
• Click on "Take me to the store".
• You will find all the e-books and The Life magazine issues there.
• The app is best downloaded where there is Wi-Fi.After June 9: How to keep and access downloaded e-books
• Keep the ST Star E-books app on your device. Deleting it will mean you can no longer access the app.
• Keep the publications that you downloaded earlier in the app.
• If you delete the publications, they will no longer be accessible after June 9.
• To access the publications, first open the app on your device. Click on the "Library" icon at the bottom. You will find the e-books that you downloaded earlier. -
NOTE: The ST Star app is supported from iOS 6 to 9.3.1 and Android 4.0.3 to 5.1.1.
"Now that we have revamped our ST website and smartphone offerings, we have decided to do more in those spaces to meet their needs, and consolidate our content in these platforms."
The ST Star E-books app won a bronze award for tablet publishing last November at the 6th Asian Digital Media Awards (Adma) organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers.
The Life magazine won a gold award in the Best Lifestyle Mobile Service category at Adma. Two other e-books - Ocean's Fury, on the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and Living History, on ST's 170 years of history - were part of cross-media projects that also picked up awards at Adma last year.
In addition, the app won a silver for mobile applications (lifestyle) at the 2014 W3 awards, which recognises creative excellence on the Web.
Other popular downloads in the app's library include Lee Kuan Yew: The Final Journey, on the death of Singapore's founding prime minister and Singaporeans' overwhelming response; Lee Kuan Yew: The Man And His Ideas, which extracts some chapters from the original 1997 book; and 100 Hot Bods, a compilation of the popular Sunday Times column.
A PDF version of Personal Best, an e-book with tips for running a good race, is now available at ST's website (go to http://str.sg/44nV).
From Saturday to next Wednesday, stories from Guilty As Charged: 25 Crimes That Have Shaken Singapore Since 1965 will be released in batches of five per day (live from Saturday at http://str.sg/guilty).
Some other e-books will be converted to Web specials at ST's website, www.straitstimes.com, which offers a wide spread of stories by ST's award-winning newsroom.
Readers can get breaking news from a round-the-clock live blog, as well as all content from the print edition, at the mobile-friendly website.
It also hosts a variety of digital-only content such as explainers and Web specials on topical issues, which incorporate multimedia content including interactive graphics, videos and social media. Among the special reports are comprehensive packages on Budget 2016 and Asia's Territorial Disputes.
Readers can download e-books from the ST Star E-books app until June 9. Thereafter, readers will still be able to read publications they have downloaded as long as they do not delete the app from their devices. The app is available on iPads (not iPhones) as well as Android smartphones and tablets.
