While any one of a dozen new e-Book readers (EBR) were shown at CES last week, perhaps the most compelling was the long awaited "Skiff" EBR a Hearst Corp. spin-off company. From the display industry side, it made news simply because it is first to feature an electrophoretic display (EPD) mounted on a "next generation" flexible metal foil (stainless steel) backplane.

Steve Sechrist
Senior Analyst and Editor

Skiff claims the new UXGA (1200 x 1600) touch display technology from LG Display, enables the world’s largest (11.5-inch diagonal display), thinnest (~0.25-inch) and strongest/most durable with no glass screen to break. The company showed two versions at the mid-week CES press conference, and one included a color EPD-although "no photos" or even "hands-on" time, were allowed. Other features of the device include a Wi-Fi and 3G enabled device on a 9-inch x 11-inch platform, 174 ppi display, 4Gb internal memory with expandable SDHC 2.0 card slot, and one-week Li Ion battery from a 2-3 hour charge.

The Skiff reader is the brainchild of media giant Hearst Corp. who is in a battle for corporate publishing survival as the print ad revenue model continues to bleed red ink across the entire industry. Their empire includes some of the top publications in the country like the San Francisco Chronicle, plus top magazines like Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Popular Mechanics and Seventeen.

But unlike traditional book readers, Hearst’s Skiff, is focusing on the needs of its newspaper and magazine offerings, "It’s not just print, but the layout that makes the publication unique," said Gilbert Fuchsberg, President of the newly formed Skiff LLC, based out of New York City. He quickly emphasized that this includes display advertising too, "…as important elements that must transition over into the electronic print domain." But the company won’t stop there. With Skiff, they plan to open up the technology platform to all media companies willing to participate.

To get there, the company partnered with ARM chip licensee Marvell who will supply a "Skiff RDK" (short for reader development kit) that includes the recently developed Marvell Armada SoC. This is Marvell’s ARM processor and integrated display controller for the EPD market. Together the two companies want to offer the Skiff platform to like-minded publishers looking to preserve the look-and-feel of the publication. The goal is "rapid prototyping". Deliverables include the hardware and software support.

And in a direct-compete play against relatively new content distribution companies like Amazon and Apple, Skiff plans a reading service and digital storefront with plans to go beyond the single Hearst supported device and includes most smart phones, tablets, even notebooks and PCs.

We think the Skiff is ground breaking on several fronts, not the least of which is the new flex display. The color version shown at the press conference may have a way to go before meeting the needs of the market, and that also includes full motion video. But we have clearly seen a gen 2 EBR device that moves the industry away from simple book reading and into the domain of electronic newsprint and magazines-and accomplished, not by some CE giant like Sony or Samsung, but by one who understands the needs of the publisher best. Hat’s off to Skiff, and Hearst (and partners LGD and Marvel) for ushering us into the next generation. - Steve Sechrist