Guinness World Records is launching its first paid app. The app, designed specifically for the iPad, will be available in the App Store on December 16. After launching a free lite version of the app last spring, the new version, called Guinness World Records: At Your Fingertips, will retail for $4.99 and features video and games.

The new app corresponds to the latest Guinness print title, Guinness World Records 2011, which was published in September and follows a year-long push from the company to expand the branded print series online. Guinness also released, this year, it's first e-book edition of its bestselling title and also a Web site at www.gwrchallengers.com.

The Web site, like the new app, allows users to compete in certain contests and potentially break a standing world record, and be published as a new record holder in the next Guinness edition. The new app, which features over 150 color photos and 20 video clips, also allows users to compete, in real-time, to break a standing Guinness World Record. Among the exclusive online challenges offered through the app is a contest for who can enter the alphabet backwards, in the quickest time on an iPad.

The new app from Guinness if the first of five the company will be releasing. All the apps are set to retail at $4.99. The free app Guinness previously released received over 150,000 downloads.