BBC News iPad app hits 1 million downloads

MobileIQ the developers of the BBC News iPad app announced that the app had hit 1 million downloads.

The 1 million download landmark was hit in less that 15 weeks from the apps launch on April 3 and it was all driven by users outside of the UK.

The app was available on day one of the iPad’s launch and was an instant hit and is amongst the most popular news apps within the iTunes store.

The app has already gone through several revisions since the launch – it’s currently in version 1.3 – , with changes to the interface to make it easier to use based on customer feedback from the app store.

What is remarkable is that BBC News App is still not available in the UK, its home market, which means internationally the ease of use of the app – combined with great BBC content – is driving adoption.

The app allows users to view news stories by geographical region, by category including business, technology, entertainment and sport, and has news in other languages including Spanish, Russian and Arabic. Additionally there’s, Twitter integration, video including one minute news summaries, and a personalise facility to change the app to suit users interests and download content for offline browsing.

UPDATE – 23 July – The BBC have announced that they will be launching the BBC News app today, initially on the Apple iPhone and iPad and, later in the year, on other platforms as well.