Enterprise Edition of Adobe's Digital Publishing Suite Now Out of Beta

As of today, the Enterprise Edition of the Adobe Digital Publishing Suite is out of beta and a formally shipping product. Many of publishing’s big guns (Bonnier, Condé Nast, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, etc.) have been using the Enterprise Edition beta for months to produce tablet apps that complement their print magazines.
Adobe calls this the “Enterprise Edition” because it’s aimed at companies with deep pockets and significant development and IT resources. The Enterprise Edition isn’t just about creating an interactive publication in InDesign CS5 and then converting that to a file format that iPads and Android tablets can read. It also includes tools publishers can use to hook into existing publishing platforms and subscription systems. Plus, Adobe’s Omniture technology serves up exhaustive analytics. The Enterprise Edition also comes with a new service, called the Viewer Builder, that makes it easier for publishers to create a Content Viewer that’s branded with each magazine’s identity.
Although you’re no doubt very curious about the price, I can’t scratch that itch. Pricing information is available only through a custom quote.
There will be at least one other version of the Digital Publishing Suite; it will be called the Professional Edition, and it will ship sometime between April and June, 2011. CreativePro.com will give you more information on that edition as soon as Adobe lets us spill the beans.
Dave Dickson, the product manager for the Adobe Digital Publishing Suite, has posted a helpful FAQ about today’s announcement, some of which I’ve excerpted below:
Will you support Apple App Store subscriptions and Google One Pass?
Yes. Publishers will be able to monetize their content through these services using Digital Publishing Suite.
On what devices will I be able to distribute content?
Digital Publishing Suite allows publishers to distribute their content on Apple iPad, Android devices like Samsung Galaxy Tab and Motorola Xoom, and forthcoming on the RIM PlayBook.
Does Enterprise Edition integrate with Creative Suite?
Definitely. Digital Publishing Suite integrates tightly with Adobe InDesign CS5. InDesign CS5 is available as a separate purchase from Digital Publishing Suite.
How is Enterprise Edition priced?
Enterprise Edition pricing is available through a custom quote and based on the following:
* Platform fee: A monthly fee to access Digital Publishing Suite hosted services; includes all titles in a publishing customer’s portfolio
* Service fee: A fee to deliver and fulfill publications across platform and devices incurred each time a user downloads an issue of a publication.
Enterprise Edition customers can also engage with Adobe Professional Services for custom implementation and training on Digital Publishing Suite.