San Jose Mercury News offers an interesting look at the pros and cons regarding Apple’s recent push into digital publishing. The company’s new subscription model could potentially make it the “online gatekeeper” as the digital newsstand for newspaper and magazine content (similar to its current dominance in digital music), but the model has met with some resistance from the industry and mixed reviews from analysts.

On the upside, Apple’s model offers publishers instant exposure to the many Apps Store subscribers and makes subscribing a simple, proven process. Recognizing this, some publishers are already on board. The iPad-only digital newspaper The Daily from News Corp., for example, launched around the same time Apple announced its digital publishing plan — while some newspapers, including the Mercury News and the New York Times, are currently test-running the subscription model.

The proposal is a bold move by Apple, which takes a 30 percent cut for each newspaper or magazine subscriber via iTunes. And what may draw the most controversy, the model also restricts publishers from offering lower prices than what they charge through iPhone and iPad apps.

The article raises some possible negative implications, including:

1. There are concerns from European antitrust authorities, which could eventually place a target on Apple.

2. By “playing hardball” with publishers, Apple may run the risk of driving its customers to other tablet-makers.

3. Publishers may fear that Apple is putting itself between them and their new customers.