ePaper editions: valuable news products, or just unnecessary?

sfnblog reporting:
The Boston Globe announced yesterday that it was following in the footsteps of other newspapers and launching an ePaper edition for online and print subscribers, according to boston.com. The ePaper version, which mirrors the format of the print paper, can be read on a laptop or downloaded as an app for smartphones and tablets, the article said.
The “replica edition” contains additional digital features such as page-turning, navigation scrolling and bookmarking, the article said. The new version also features a “text-to-speech” option, which can read selected articles or the entire newspaper aloud.
According to the description from the iTunes app store, users can choose a setting in which Apple Newsstand automatically downloads the paper daily, just like a print version would be delivered each day. The description also states that users can click on articles to access embedded links or share those articles on social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
Subscribers can obtain the ePaper from bostonglobe.com or download the app from the iTunes store, while non-subscribers can purchase single issues for $0.99 or in-app subscriptions for $14.99 per month, the article said.
Globe publisher Christopher M. Mayer said in the article that the ePaper version is meant to complement the Globe’s other formats and make the paper available in areas where Internet access is not readily available, such as during flights.
“Part of the strategy is to introduce additional digital products that allow our readers to connect with our journalism in a variety of ways,” Mayer said. “We’re constantly looking at ways to increase the value of a Boston Globe subscription.”
NewspaperDirect, which uses its PressReader app to create ePaper versions of newspapers and magazines, produces the Boston Globe ePaper, in addition to versions by The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Chicago Tribune, the article said. PressReader produces more than 2,000 ePapers, according to the website.
 http://www.sfnblog.com/2012/03/28/epaper-editions-valuable-news-products-or-just-unnecessary