RSS Feed
April 30th, 2013 
Digg has surveyed thousands of people to find out what features they want in its upcoming RSS reader in preparation for a June beta launch, the company said in a blog post.
(Credit: Digg)
“Our beta release in June will be just the beginning; a product built with experimentation in mind by a team eager to work with you to build something you love,” the Digg blog said.
This means Digg will start testing its RSS reader, which will probably be a subscription service, just a month before Google Reader shuts down.
This round of user feedback, gathered from over 8600 responses, included whether people would pay for an RSS reader. Most users said no, but 40 per cent said they would be willing to pay.
“Free products on the internet don’t have a great track record. They tend to disappear, leaving users in a lurch,” said the blog post. “We need to build a product that people can rely on and trust will always be there for them. We’re not sure how pricing might work, but we do know that we’d like our users to be our customers, not our product. So when we asked survey participants whether or not they would be willing to pay, we were pleased to see that over 40 per cent said yes.”
Digg also plans to make sure it is easy to share links to Facebook, Twitter, email and “read it later” services like Pocket, Instapaper, Evernote and Readability, based on survey results.
(Credit: Digg)
Nearly half of all the people surveyed said they didn’t use Google Reader’s social features before Google got rid of them in 2011. Only 17 per cent of people said they had used them often. Despite this, Digg plans to add social elements to its reader, but not at first.
“Though we may not have a robust social functionality in place for launch, ultimately, we believe that social features which foster connections between readers will be an important part of the Digg experience,” said the blog post.
To sign up for Digg’s surveys, go here. Digg said previously that the new reader will be simple to use, will work across a variety of devices and easily import feeds from existing Google Reader accounts.
Via CNET.com
Source Article from http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/CNETAustralia/~3/3qlAxsVFBCc/digg-to-release-google-reader-replacement-beta-in-june-339344126.htm
Posted in 
