Digital comics

The New 52 #1s are all 99 cents starting today. I think it's permanent but I can't tell. I grabbed batman, Batwoman, Animal Man, Swamp Thing, Frankenstein, and a few others.

Assuming this is permanent, this is great. I've said for a long time that older issues should be 99 cents. This is good marketing.
 
A bunch of Hulk stuff is 99 cents today, including World War Hulk and Planet Hulk.

Not really my thing, but there it is for anyone interested.
 
E said:
A bunch of Hulk stuff is 99 cents today, including World War Hulk and Planet Hulk.

Not really my thing, but there it is for anyone interested.
Click to expand...

I picked up Planet Hulk. I've been wanting to read it for a while.

Has anyone read the Moriarty series they have on sale now? It looks interesting.
 
Marvel has 1602, 1985, Eternals, and Marvels Eye of the Camera on sale for 99 cents.

DC is having kind of a weird Grant Morrison sale. Included is Batman RIP, WE3 (which I grabbed), Batman Inc (also grabbed), and Seaguy, then some issues of Batman & Robin, All-Star Superman, JLA, and Invisibles.

They've never shown hesitation when putting huge groups of comics in sale so I'm not sure why they shorted us on some of them. Why not all of All-Star Superman? Or more of his Batman run? Seven Soldiers would've been great too, but that's probably too new to put on sale.

Oh well. It's a really nice selection of cheap comics if you're into that right now.
 
Image's 2012 #1 issues are on sale for $0.99. This includes Saga #1 - a great excuse to pick it up if you haven't; it's my favorite book and highly recommended.

Also includes Fatale, The Manhattan Projects, Secret, Hell Yeah, and others.
 
Marvel's doing an Amazing Spider-Man sale for today (Friday). It looks like the last 40+ or so issues of Brand New Day.
 
There's an Ultimate Spider-Man sale going on now - the first 70 or so issues are 99 cents. DC is also doing a Before Watchman Ozymandias sale on Len Wein and Jae Lee DC work.
 
I've been waiting for this for a long time - NEXTWAVE is on sale for $0.99/issue.

Also, The first few issues of Charlie Huston's Moon Knight, which is really good. I only grabbed the first arc because I didn't want to bother with the Initiative tie-in stuff.
 
Kind of interesting article I came across, interesting mostly because I think this is the first time I've seen sales figures of any kind for Comixology:

BAM! POW! REVAMP!
Comic book publishers go high-tech to gain new, younger readers

The staff at Midtown Comics in New York City's Times Square has a name for non-comics readers: civilians. These days, they see a lot more civilians as films like "The Avengers" and "The Amazing Spider-Man" top the box office.

"These movies are a great way to get civilians in the door. It's like a gateway drug," said Thor Parker, social marketing and events director for Midtown Comics.

Reinforcements could not have come sooner. Comic book sales have been strong over the last decade, but the core audience is getting older. With lucrative, multiyear Hollywood contracts on the line, publishers need to attract new and younger readers. The industry's twin titans, Marvel and DC Comics, are now revamping their hottest properties and reaching iPad and mobile device users in a bid to refresh their readership.

The demographic problem goes back to the 1960s. As new forms of entertainment divided kids' attention, comic book publishers rallied around a target audience: teenage boys. That move gave birth to Silver Age superheroes, and publishers have banked on those franchise characters ever since.

Today, media giants Walt Disney and Time Warner own Marvel and DC Comics, respectively. The transition from publishers to multimedia entertainment groups entails streamlining characters across media so they are more recognizable.

For example, Marvel ditched the costume that ace archer Hawkeye wore for 50 years so he looks more like actor Jeremy Renner in "The Avengers." It also appears poised to replace Nick Fury, a white character, with a biracial son who bears a striking resemblance to Samuel L. Jackson, who plays Fury in the film.

But moves like that run the risk of alienating loyal comic buyers, who take umbrage when movies influence comics too much. The fear is that movie elements will compromise the integrity and continuity of print stories.

"The comic shop readers need to feel like they are customer No. 1, like their commitment to these characters over the years is worth something," said John Jackson Miller, a comic book writer and founder of the Comics Chronicle, a website that analyzes industry sales.

Still, publishers have found success with revamps in recent years. Marvel's Ultimate imprint, which features updated, alternate-universe versions of established characters, boosted sales throughout the last decade. Ultimate books often outperformed mainstream titles by leveraging proven money-makers such as "The Avengers" and "X-Men," and "Spider-Man," but giving new readers a jumping-on point.

"Everyone knows Spider-Man's origin story, but when they see it a little differently, it's more exciting," said Parker.

The Ultimate line has paid off in other ways, too: The script for the $1.2 billion blockbuster "The Avengers" was inspired by a 2002 Ultimate comic book.

Last summer, DC Comics went even further. It rebooted every title to issue No. 1 and introduced younger versions of its characters — including Batman and Superman — with simpler back stories. The relaunch has been a main driver for higher comic book sales this year. Total sales for May through Diamond Distribution were up 44.2 percent over last May. Year-to-date sales increased 20.9 percent.

DC also upended the industry's distribution model in tandem with the reboot. The company began releasing digital comics to tablets and smartphones the same day print issues hit the shelves. Marvel followed suit and rolled out same-day releases for its major titles this spring. Previously, both publishers uploaded digital comics weeks or months behind print releases.

The advent of so-called Guided View Technology created by ComiXology, a digital software and services company, made going digital more viable. The software lets users view entire pages or fit panels to the screen, making comics easier to read on smartphones and small tablets. Both DC and Marvel distribute digital comics exclusively through ComiXology.

"The experience of reading a comic is intact," said John Steinberger, CEO of ComiXology. "In fact, a lot of people consider it enhanced. Every panel is a surprise."

The numbers so far look promising. Downloads through ComiXology's Comics app now stand at 77 million since the company's launch in mid-2007, up from 50 million in January. It is consistently the top-grossing iTunes app on Wednesdays, the day new comics come out.

More importantly, digital comics are attracting those elusive new readers. In ComiXology's latest poll of users, only 20 percent identified themselves as long-term readers. And 40 percent of distribution is outside the United States. Print distributors traditionally have had a hard time reaching foreign readers.

Digital comics also stand to capitalize on superheroes' Hollywood success. This past week, ComiXology ran a 99-cent special on issues of "The Amazing Spider-Man" to coincide with the wall-crawler's new film release. Moviegoers who fire up the app on their iPads will discover the latest issue conveniently features Spidey's big-screen foe, the Lizard.

Digital distribution could also help publishers increase profit margins. ComiXology does not disclose its deals with publishers, but a digital release saves about 80 cents in printing costs per issue. A comic with a cover price of $3.99 only nets publishers about $1.60 after discounts to comic shops, leaving them with thin margins after printing.

If digital distribution and the gamble on character revamps pan out, the term "civilians" may become an anachronism. A new age of the comic geek will be upon us.
Click to expand...
 
The Apple iBook store - not Comixology - has a few $3.99 digital collections: New Avengers: Breakout, Ultimates Spider-Man Vol. 1, and Amazing Spider-Man: Brand New Day Vol. 1.

Last Friday ComiXology had Old Man Logan issues for $0.99.
 
E said:
Kind of interesting article I came across, interesting mostly because I think this is the first time I've seen sales figures of any kind for Comixology:
Click to expand...

that's an interesting article. I've started to buy some comics digitally recently. I still buy Amazing Spider-Man & Ultimate Spider-Man in hard copy b/c i'm a collector, but I'm very happy buying other titles that I care less about through comixology. In fact, i'm more likely to buy issues digitally b/c i tend to be more impulsive with online purchases than i am buying things in a store.
 
Comixology currently has a bunch of the new Image #1s for free if anyone wants to check out some of the best new comics of 2012 so far. I recommend Fatale, Prophet, Glory, Saga, The Manhattan Projects, Mind the Gap and Dancer.
 
There is a Kevin Smith sale on ComiXology. It includes his Daredevil story...I didn't care for it enough to spend another $9 or so on it.
 
ProjectX2 said:
Comixology currently has a bunch of the new Image #1s for free if anyone wants to check out some of the best new comics of 2012 so far. I recommend Fatale, Prophet, Glory, Saga, The Manhattan Projects, Mind the Gap and Dancer.
Click to expand...
I'm gonna try Glory, I've heard good things. Danger Club #1 is free too. I really liked it.

E said:
There is a Kevin Smith sale on ComiXology. It includes his Daredevil story...I didn't care for it enough to spend another $9 or so on it.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've got the old Oversized Hardcover of it, I don't need to get it again. I don't seem myself reading it again unless I'm doing a huge DD re-read and then I'm getting the books out.
 
I just thought of something. Marvel & DC should set up a deal that allows you to subscribe to a title for a year. If you do that and pay upfront, then you also get access to older issues of that title (before a certain date) for a year. I think that would be pretty sweet.
 
Captain Canuck said:
I just thought of something. Marvel & DC should set up a deal that allows you to subscribe to a title for a year. If you do that and pay upfront, then you also get access to older issues of that title (before a certain date) for a year. I think that would be pretty sweet.
Click to expand...

It is pretty surprising that a digital subscription isn't offered anywhere. Say a year of a $2.99 title for $1.99. I might make the switch for that...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top