How is Bloomberg Law’s New App?

Bloomberg Law has announced the release of a new app that works in conjunction with your Bloomberg Law subscription. The app is available both for the Apple iOS (via the App Store) and the Android operating system (via Google Play).

Emphasizes current awareness

The app really emphasizes current awareness materials—upon logging in, a user is met with top legal news and business analytical content. Among the results for these materials will be a heavy dose of Bloomberg-created content. Bloomberg is clearly using this app as a method of emphasizing the material it already produces. Considering the vast amounts of financial data and analysis Bloomberg is responsible for creating, it makes sense to push this already existing information onto its Bloomberg Law platform.

Ties in to the web-based Bloomberg Law

The user customization and cloud-collaboration with the Bloomberg Law web-based interface is the portion of this app that interests me the most. The app ties into your existing Bloomberg Law account in a few ways. If you set up a docket tracking alert on the web interface of Bloomberg Law, you can now access the results on the Bloomberg Law app. Also, there is seamless access to the items you put in your “Queue” on Bloomberg Law—so you can do the heavy lifting of your search on the web interface, and place the results in your queue to read on your mobile device later.

Searches smaller content sets

There is a universal search option, but the actual search results come from more selective content sets than on the more robust web interface. The main categories of results for when you do a search are companies, people, and news. You cannot use the mobile app to search for dockets, opinions, treatises or legislative and statutory materials, for example.

Given how much earlier team blue and team red threw their hats into this ring, it is nice to see team orange step up and provide its users with a mobile app. I think the app’s stripped down interface and smaller content sets is a laudable and interesting choice, since, if heavier researching is required, a user can always use their mobile device’s browser to access the more complete Bloomberg Law site. This app is pushing concision and speed—it supplements a larger product.

Quick thanks to Kevin O’Keefe over at LexBlog for reporting on Bloomberg Law releasing this app!