Advertisers flocking to the Apple iPad

The Apple iPad has generated a large amount of hype among bloggers and consumers, but has also drawn the interest of advertisers looking to expand into new markets.

Magazines, publishers and newspapers may be able to find a new way to generate revenue as their traditional markets continue to dry up.

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Time Magazine, which remains popular even though it faces online competition, will have Toyota, Unilever, Fidelity Investments and several other advertisers willing to fork over $200,000 for iPad edition Time Magazine issues.

Wired Magazine also reportedly is offering advertisers an ad deal depending on the number of ads they're interested.

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The Wall Street Journal, which already charges for online subscriptions and paper subscriptions, will charge iPad owners $18 per month for the digital subscription.

Although the actual demand for iPads remains unknown, it's expected Steve Jobs will be able to increase hype around the device throughout the rest of the year.  The $499 (starting price) device is expected to launch in North America on April 3.

Reported pre-order sales over the first three days was predicted at 152,000, but dropped down to 1,000 per hour after hitting 25,000 per hour for a few hours.

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This type of interest from advertisers and publishers may not be good for consumers, as prices remain high and the industry fractures into different alliances.  A possible way to prevent this is to have multiple competitors to the iPad -- which seems likely  -- so publishers cannot lock their content to one device.

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