WoodWing has released an Apple Watch app template for its clients, with German publisher Gruner+Jahr its first user.
The app for the Berlin issue of travel magazine Geo Saison was available on the day of the Watch launch, providing location-based information and navigation for shops, restaurants and points of interest.
Watch apps require a connected iPhone running a corresponding app, through which it receives the content of the respective offer, and Apple provides a development kit which controls both the display of the interface and the content - including text, images and videos on the Watch - and the interaction between the two.
WoodWing product development senior vice president Dennis van Nooij says the kit is a powerful framework to develop innovative apps: "However, it requires experience with the programming of apps for Apple's iOS mobile operating system and know-how to deal with content for different devices."
The WoodWing application template will enable them to develop Watch apps quickly to individual needs.
Gruner+Jahr digital products managing director Oliver von Wersch says the Watch is an attractive addition to their portfolio of media channels: "It enables us to reach our readers in the context of their current situation to offer them content and services which facilitate their lives.
WoodWing says its new digital services business unit will also provide consulting for content for the Apple Watch. "Especially in the early days of a new device category and the development of relevant, device-specific content for the new platform, it is extremely important for publishers and brands to gain a comprehensive and reliable overview of the opportunities and challenges," says managing director John Fong.