Publish2's platform solution is based on the premise that a single, unified content management system is actually not the best way for a media company to achieve flexibility, efficiency and the ability to respond rapidly to market and industry changes. In fact, the experience of large media companies who tried such "unified systems" developed by legacy vendors demonstrates that these systems often fail to achieve these goals.
As an alternative, Publish2's solution is to create a dynamic network of content management systems and platforms, some new (e.g. open source web CMS, tablet publishing), some old (e.g. legacy print editorial systems, homegrown web CMSs), some yet to be developed. Publish2's network architecture, like the Web itself, provides true flexibility because it acknowledges that each platform -- print, broadcast, web, tablet, mobile, social -- has its own unique requirements that makes it impossible for a single system to adequately serve them all. It also acknowledges that a single unified system is unlikely to adapt well to new platforms yet to be developed, because a single system by its nature is a monolith and therefore fundamentally less flexible. Instead, what publishers need as they evolve into digital is a network architecture that has the flexibility to connect diverse platforms and to easily add or change individual platform solutions. Each platform, internal and external, becomes a node in the content platform network.
Publish2 focuses on enabling content and product workflows, e.g. digital-first publishing, app publishing, crowdsourcing content, internal and external content sharing. Publish2 has tremendous flexibility to adapt to the requirements of each workflow in order to maximize efficiency. Publish2 can integrate seamlessly with any publishing system or platform and transform content to meet the requirements of any internal workflow or end-user product.
Publish2 also address another critical shortcoming of unified content systems -- their inability to connect dynamically to external platforms. No media company can be an island when it comes to content. Publish2's network architecture can connect a media company's own systems with a network of content sources and platforms, from traditional newswires to regional content sharing partners to community contributors submitting content via blogs, Facebook, or a simple web form. Publish2 has a robust rights management and permissions layer that enables both internal and external content workflows through the same network architecture.
Publish2 gives news organizations the flexibility to use any open source or proprietary web CMS by connecting the web CMS with all other products and workflows, e.g. print, broadcast, tablets, mobile, and social. The web CMS can serve as the primary interface for content entry and editing. Wordpress, for example, has an excellent set of plugins (e.g. Edit Flow) for this purpose. Publish2 can then flow all content from the web CMS to the print editorial system, tablet and mobile products, and social media, enabling a truly digital-first workflow. Publish2 can also share content across web CMS installations for each regional group, enabling seamless internal content sharing.
Publish2 also gives news organizations the option of continuing to use legacy print editorial systems by seamlessly syncing each system with all other platforms. Publish2 can integrate with even the oldest and most outdated legacy systems by supporting file transfer via FTP, legacy formats such as AP's ANPA, and very simple formats such as text files with semi-structured headers.
Content published first in the web CMS can flow back into the legacy print editorial system for print editing and layout, with HTML stripped and any other required content transformations and optimizations. Updates made on the web flow back into the print editorial system, like an internal wire service. Changes made in print editorial system can also be sent back to the web CMS and other platforms based on granular editorial and workflow rules.
News organizations also have the option of removing the legacy print editorial system and working directly in InDesign. Publish2 can connect InDesign with all other platforms through XML files imported into and exported from InDesign. Content created in the web CMS -- or a web-based alternative such as Google Docs -- can be sent to InDesign via XML file transfer to any network or local environment where InDesign is running. The XML schema can be mapped to print styles and templates. Edits can be exported as XML files which Publish2 can then import and apply to content on other platforms based on granular editorial and workflow rules.
