Guardian Australia has launched Australia Weekend, a digital reimagination of the traditional weekend newspaper, offering a new way for readers to experience trusted, independent Guardian journalism in Australia.
Available to subscribers on iOS and Android phones and tablets, Australia Weekend offers readers early access to the best journalism planned for the weekend, as well as a carefully curated selection of the week’s essential news and analysis from Australia and the world.
Available to download at 6am (AEDT) every Saturday morning, each week’s edition replicates the experience of reading the weekend newspaper, but with the added convenience and portability of mobile devices. Readers have the opportunity to catch up with the best Guardian journalism – to reflect, understand, and make sense of the week – at their own pace, at a time and place that suits them.
The elegantly designed digital edition is the result of extensive research and conversations with readers, which identified a clear appetite for context and curation amid an increasingly relentless news cycle. Each week’s edition is finite and completable, offering a break from endlessly scrollable news feeds, and providing a natural companion to Guardian Australia’s existing breaking news-oriented Live app.
Australia Weekend forms the central component of Guardian Australia’s reconfigured digital subscription bundle, and is the first dedicated subscription product created specifically for the Australian market. Subscription also unlocks access to premium features within the Live app, and ad-free reading on all devices.
Readers are invited to explore the new Editions app by activating a 14-day free trial of the digital subscription. After the trial period, subscription is available at the special introductory rate of $10.75 per month for the first three months, later moving to $21.50 per month. Alternatively, readers can save 20% by opting for an annual rate of $174.99.
The launch of Australia Weekend represents an important milestone as Guardian Australia looks to build on its growth in audience and financial supporters. More than one in four Australians now read Guardian Australia, and more than 150,000 have made financial contributions over the past year.
Lenore Taylor, editor, Guardian Australia, said: “More and more Australians are relying on Guardian Australia to provide a trusted, independent voice. At the same time, readers tell us they want space, away from the grind of constant breaking news, to catch up on what’s most important and understand what it means.
“Australia Weekend combines the best bits of a print weekend newspaper with the convenience and style of the digital medium. It’s the best of both worlds — the weekend paper in the palm of your hand.
“Each edition provides subscribers with early access to some of the best journalism we have planned for our website over the weekend, as well as a considered selection of the week’s essential journalism from Australia and the world, providing space to reflect and make sense of the week.”
Dan Stinton, managing director, Guardian Australia, said: “The Australia Weekend app is the result of in-depth research into what our readers want. This is a way to access the best Guardian journalism, carefully curated for the weekend, in an app that has been specifically designed to have a beginning, middle and end – all without the distraction of breaking news in an ad-free environment.”
“This launch is an important evolution of our reader revenue strategy, giving Australian readers a new way to support the Guardian through digital subscriptions.”
