Kindle Fire Users Get Free Access To The Washington Post

Amazon will be supplying Kindle Fire users with a free six-month subscription to The Washington Post’s new tablet app, according to a media statement the company released on Thursday. If you’ve got a Kindle Fire, you won’t even need to seek the app out to download it. According to Amazon, “The app will be made available as part of a free over-the-air software update for Fire tablets, including Fire HDX, Fire HD, and Kindle Fire HD.”

Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos purchased The Washington Post in 2013 for $250 million. When it comes to the launch of the new Post app, Kindle Senior Vice President Russ Grandinetti explains that Amazon is “looking for ways to bring more value to customers, and free access to this new app is another example of the benefits of being a Fire tablet owner.”

The Washington Post also released a detailed statement about their vision for the new app, which can only be accessed from the Kindle Fire for now. The publication plans to “roll out this app to iOS and Android in the first part of next year.” Other tablet users are still able to access older versions of The Washington Post app in the iTunes and Android app stores.

The revamped version of The Washington Post app exclusive to Kindle Fire users features a new user interface inspired by traditional paper and ink publications. Screenshots of the new app published by The Washington Post show off large high-res cover story graphics and headlines, along with a sneak peak of the article just below the imagery. Kindle Fire users can quickly pinch out to see just text-based headlines, so that you can quickly jump from story to story. The publication explains that the new user interface is changing to conform to the new user interface, with “the editorial team ‘producing for pinch'” as they release stories for the app.

The publication’s Kindle Fire app designers and developers apparently placed a heavy emphasis on decreasing load times, so that readers can open the app and start browsing without a delay. According to The Washington Post statement, “The daily editions (in all of the high-res glory) will be downloaded in the background while the user is away. When the user opens the app, all of the content will be there.”

However, Kindle Fire users are not expected to opt in if they don’t want to. Those who do not wish to keep The Washington Post app on their devices can press and hold the app icon, and then select “Remove” to erase the app from their Kindle Fire device.

Image credit: Jeff Bezos by Steve Jurvetson, used under CC BY 2.0 / Cropped from original