Apple applied its model of splitting revenue 70/30 in favour of the publisher to “publishing apps, not SaaS [Software as a Service] apps” in mid-February 2011. This is the arrangement it has long had with music publishers, film owners and app developers through iTunes and the App Store. But the model has garnered criticism from the publishing world, accustomed to paying a significantly smaller price for distribution at scale. Publishers are not bound exclusively to the App Store or iBookstore in entering an arrangement with Apple.

However, in what could be considered deference to the tech giant’s dominance, the (Financial Times?) m-site is designed in HTML5 rather than Flash, which does not function on Apple’s mobile devices (iPad and iPhone). Managing director of Financial Times, Rob Grimshaw, has said that there wasn’t a single feature of the native app they were unable to recreate in the web-based m-site. Reportedly, the app will bring new content to readers in real-time, rather than waiting on an extended-release process.

The Financial Times hopes to transition users of its current App Store-based app to the external app. The move comes at a time when more economical tablets are gaining popularity in many markets.