The Financial Times has launched its FT app for Windows 8, along with a separate app for its Chinese edition.
The launch – which comes alongside a whole host of other apps for the OS, from companies including the New York Times and Shazam, following its release last week – is particularly interesting given that the FT withdrew its iOS app six months ago, in favour of a HTML5 mobile web app.
“The FT Windows 8 App has been built using a hybrid of HTML5 and native technology.” said FT Labs director Andrew Betts. “The same core codebase is used to power the FT app across phone, tablet and desktop devices, and in this case has been combined with the best elements from Windows 8 to create a great experience for users.” 
The app is free to download, and will come preloaded on Samsung and Sony VAIO tablets and PCs running Windows 8 – but requires an FT subscription to access its content. Stories are automatically updated and stored, so that users to read them offline.
The FT has seen a year-on-year rise of 133 per cent in mobile users, and 111 per cent on tablets. Mobile drives 25 per cent of traffic, and 15 per cent of subscriptions, to its site.
