NY1 and NY1 Noticias Launch iPhone Apps that Let Users View--and Report--News

NY1 and NY1 Noticias, a pair of Time Warner Cable-owned local news channels serving the New York City area (with news in English and Spanish respectively), have launched free apps for the Apple iPhone, iPod touch and iPad. The apps offer a range of video news and features, including (in the case of NY1) the "NY1 Minute" news summary; the channel's daily "In the Papers" segment; its daily "NY1 from the Floor" stock market report; various of its weekly segments, such as "Political Rundown" with Curtis Sliwa and Gerson Borrero, and "One on 1 with Budd Mishkin"; and its "NY Living" segments on such topics as the arts, entertainment, dining, health, technology, finance, real estate, employment and parenting. Around 300 video segments are available at any one time, according to NY1 reporter, Adam Balkin. The apps also provide text content, including news, features and Zagat restaurant reviews, among other offerings. In addition, they allow users to share stories via email, Facebook or Twitter and to receive optional news alerts.

According to NY1's Balkin, users can customize the app by "drag[ging] and drop[ping] sections to reorder them and determine which sections get updated." Balkin also states that the NY1 app offers a section called "Weather on the Ones," that allows users to "play meteorologist and pull up forecasts, high and low temperatures and even Doppler radar and satellite maps."
 
Perhaps most significantly, the apps allow users to participate in the channel's news-gathering by pressing a "Report" button to send tips and on-the-scene photos and video directly to the NY1 newsroom. According to NY1, BlackBerry and Android versions of the apps are in the works, as well as a version that will be optimized for the iPad.