Today sees the launch of i, the first new national newspaper for a generation and one which is described as ‘the paper for today’ by parent publication, The Independent.  So what do the Core team make of this new 20p daily?…

At first glance the compact publication is reminiscent of the Daily Mail’s Metro.  The front page presents a serious lead story on the ‘housing crisis of Coalition Britain’ alongside the question we have all pondered since discovering Sesame Street – ‘Is Bert gay’?  Clearly, i is looking for mass market appeal, reaching professionals on the commute while also trying to encourage younger audiences to read a paper.

Pages 2-3 offer a ‘News Matrix’, essentially an at a glance overview of today’s breaking news from across the world.  Each story is condensed into one sentence with the concise delivery reflecting Facebook/Twitter feeds.   Other factoids on the page include Numbers of the Day, The Cleverest and Least Clever Cities in the US and The TV Chef Hate Chart.  Clearly this isn’t the FT, but it’s easy to digest and not a bad opening gambit.

Page 5 onwards offers more lengthy news articles, drawn down from the Independent including comment pieces from at home and abroad, @i which invites readers to submit their opinions via text, tweet and email, and of course, the essential centre spread TV guide.    This is followed by the IQ pages, described by editor-in-chief Simon Kelner as pages to ‘keep you up-to-date with the ideas and trends that matter’ and doing just that quite nicely.  An Independent publication wouldn’t be complete with a strong arts leaning and i includes this with a succinct smattering of music, theatre, books, film and visual arts.

Five pages of business news start on page 41 of i, perhaps the clearest signal that this paper is taking the populist approach.  It’s not the most in-depth look at the business agenda but for those wanting a quick overview of the business news and markets before 9am, the one page Business Matrix isn’t a bad start to the day.  Sport rounds off the final pages of i with games and puzzles to keep delayed commuters amused on the inside back page.

So will it sell?  It’s a tough one to call. This is a well presented and highly accessible new publication but with Metro currently available for free, it will be a challenge persuading commuters to part with their cash.  Readers of the Independent are the most likely to peruse this new publication and that is perhaps the biggest risk that Russian owner Alexander Lebedev has taken in introducing i to the market.  If i’s primary accomplishment is unintentionally converting Independent readers, then the parent paper’s already woeful 200,000 readership could drop even further, leaving the future of both publications in a very precarious situation.

Read i?  Let us know below what you think of the new publication…