The Daily iPad news app cuts staff

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NEW YORK, Aug. 1 (UPI) -- The Daily, News Corp.'s iPad-only news application, based in New York, says it is laying off 50 employees, nearly a third of its work force.

In changes first reported by AllThingsD, The Daily is eliminating its sports reporting, cutting its opinion content, and will switch to a portrait-only display orientation.

The Daily will use partners such as Fox Sports instead of generating original sports content, and opinion and editorial pieces will appear in news pages rather than as a standalone section, CNET reported.

The app launched in February 2011 amid expectations consumers would be willing to pay 99 cents a day or $39.99 annually for news stories on their iPad.

However, The Daily found itself facing stiff competition online as news was getting more widely disseminated from an increasing number of resources offering it for free.

In a statement, The Daily said it would still invest in original reporting supported by visual elements, photography, and video, and would still remain steadfast in its support for the table format.