I thought I’d do something different and write a blog post about the iPad.

Why add to the noise? Because my beloved publishing industry, my source of professional identity and income, is on the verge of blowing it.

Let me run it down for you. Sometime around 2002, in boardrooms of publishing companies throughout the world, executives began to fret over the downward flow of advertising dollars from their magazines and newspapers. They’d built websites, sure, but those were barely breaking even. There was no clear path forward for the business. So we panicked and froze in place for eight years. Think Austin Powers. Or Han Solo.

Fast forward to January 27, 2010. Steve Jobs plops himself down on a couch and begins spinning a 10-inch aluminum pop tart on his finger. As if emerging from hypnosis, the executives miraculously awaken and a collective chorus of hallelujah spontaneously erupts and echoes down the halls of 6th Avenue.

“We are saved,” the executives yell! “All hail Steve!”

Now let me be clear. I was home from the Apple store last Saturday morning by 10:30, package in hand. And from that point on I saw nary a second of light of what I’m told was a glorious spring weekend. I was too busy downloading apps, surfing the web with my finger, and salivating over the clarity of streaming movies from Netflix.

I love my iPad. I think it heralds a completely new era in computing. I think it could present a much more engaging, compelling, and more personal way to consume and interact with ideas than any digital form that has preceded it.

And I think the way publishers are approaching it so far all but obviates every one of its assets. How so? By assuming that two mature media – print and desktop websites – can simply be retrofit and forced onto this very immature medium.

Here’s how it went in the minutes and hours after the publishing executives became aware of the iPad:

“It’s digital print” they cheer!

“Our magazines will look fabulous ” they sing!

“Our readers will love it,” they say somewhat more tentatively.

“Will they really,” some ask? “They didn’t seem to be loving the print version of our print all that much.”

“Hmm,” they pause. “Maybe you have a point.”

“But wait,” in rushes another, “The circulation numbers will count if we make it look and act like print!”

“And better yet,” chimes in yet another. “We can kill this ‘free’ thing once and for all, and start charging for digital content. Maybe more than ever!”

“Hooray, hurrah!” We are saved. “Screw the consumer. Save the business model!”

And so we have the publishing industry’s strategy: create products and experiences that so mimic print that we are able to extend its dying advertising and subscription models.

The magazine apps on your iPad seemingly represent no significant thought on how to serve the reader; they are about serving the business model. The websites you view on your iPad were built for the era of mice ‘n monitors, not touch screens you hold in your laps.

These are not the answers. We don’t know what the answers are yet.

Look, print-based apps can serve a purpose in all of this, as can our existing web properties. We can use them to learn, to experiment, and to get feedback. But we need to remind ourselves that they are not the destination; they are just a starting point to discovering how to create customer value in an entirely new environment.

If we lose sight of that and allow ourselves to assume the answer is from the past, our futures are bleak.

Paul Michelman is an executive editor at the Harvard Business Review Group.