A lot can happen in 1 year 8 months 20 days which is how old this post is! Enjoy the post but be sure to check out the new stuff too!!
It’s the thought that I was pondering this morning as I read a Judge Dredd Megazine on my iPad whilst riding the bus in to work. The simple fact is that whilst I realise I can only talk from my own perspective I actually am completely comfortable reading a comic book in that format and I suspect I’m not alone (actually I know I’m not but figure I shouldn’t speak for everyone else). I find the experience as rewarding as if I were holding the paper and ink book in my hands and flipping the pages.
In fact I would almost go as far as to say that I find digital comics to be more convenient and therefore more rewarding.
The resolution on the iPad is clear enough that I can enjoy the artwork completely and I’ve got the added bonus of zooming in on particular panels to appreciate them in finer detail without straining my eyes. I can carry a large library of material around with me and so I’m never stuck on a train or a bus or in a meeting without at least something of interest. There are also no creased pages or ripped covers or lost books.
Actually in one of my social media presentations I make the point of mobile devices but pointing out that the average weight of ten silver age era comic books is about half a kilogram. On my iPad I’m carrying at least 100 Aquaman comics which would normally weigh me down by 50 kilos! (I of course tie this fact back to an actual business requirement)
But what of my friendly neighbourhood comic book shop?
I love my comic book shop, they know my name, I have a standing order with them, they know a lot about comics and there is a general atmosphere of… well… comic books in there. So what happens if everyone started buying their comics digitally and directly from the source? (right now digital costs around the same and above for actual books which is just ridiculous and a topic for another post but sheesh…)
I wondered this about music as well with digital downloads surging in popularity, how CD shops might survive and was impressed to see the Sanity music chain selling “burn on demand” CDs. They simply have a card on the shelf which you take to the counter and they advise you it’ll be an hour or whatever and they burn and print it there and then. I mean that doesn’t really provide a solution for them but at least they are exploring new markets and using technology well.
Not that I think CDs will completely disappear either nor do I expect comic books to stop printing.
But the fact that I see a day that I wouldn’t be upset at the thought of buying a virtual comic rather than the paper book makes me wonder if I’m being disloyal to the comic book shop? I’m a huge advocate of supporting the comic book shops who have carried comic book culture for decades when newsagents would only stock two copies of the Super Friends at triple the standard cost.
So is there a day in the future where I can set up an account with my local comic book shop and purchase my digital comics through them? Or take my iPad or laptop into the store and download the books as I scan bar codes off the racks?
I don’t see physical books disappearing at all but I wonder about the enthusiast market such as myself who don’t really have the room at home for three tonnes of comic books and therefore about comic book shops in general?
For anyone interested my comic book reader of choice right now is Comic Book Lover for iPad.
I really doubt that comic book shops will get to take a cut of digital sales… publishers can sell direct and keep all the money for themselves.
My problem is that digital comics cost too much. If there’s no paper, no ink, no printing, no shipping, no distribution, no warehousing, no returns, no… well, no ANYTHING, really (considered comics are all assembled on computers now-a-days anyway, they’re pretty much all digital in the first place)… and NO PHYSICAL COPY FOR ME TO KEEP and loan or trade or sell… well, I am NOT paying full cover price for all the stuff I’m NOT getting.
Like you, I actually enjoy reading comics on the iPad… but availability and pricing need to come into line with what you get.
And where did you obtain all your Aquaman comics? Did you scan them? Buy them? STEAL them?
You should check out Dave2´s last post… Rich
I’m with Dave2. I think comic book shops wouldn’t survive a move to online sales. They struggle to survive as it is.
As you know I have huge problems with how expensive physical comics are. I can see WHY they are expensive, but I don’t think they are cost effective for the amount of time I get out of reading them.
So I stopped buying them.
However, I would buy digital comics if they were, say 25p-50p in price. That would probably be a bit low a price for the publishers, but it’s my limit.
Of course I’d have to get an iPad first. Damn your eyes!
You should check out Dan´s last post… Sunday Morning UkeTube- Venus
See you say that’s too cheap but if you spread that over all the other people who would buy them (remembering there’s no reprint charge or minimum/maximum run) who may not have legitimately bought them in the past through digital or conventional means and I think you have something -- it’s the same as television shows for me, let everyone around the world download for a small fee, ends up being lots of money
Preaching to the choir!! The idea that a digital comic is the same price or even more expensive in some cases than its paper equivalent is extremely short sighted and generally mean of the major comic book companies.
It’s the same model as mp3′s in iTunes, if it is cheaper to purchase the CD in the store than it is to buy on iTunes then it is a complete failure.
I’ve had more thoughts on the matter now that I’ll wrap up into tomorrow’s post.
As for Aquaman, I know a guy who knows a guy to whom I ask no questions…
The hubby and feral kid (comic geeks on the Spectrum) say they’d happily read their comics in electronic format but they’d still want the option of buying the paper copy.
You should check out Jayne´s last post… August 24 happened- believe it or not- then theres the photos
I don’t think the option would ever be gone though I imagine eventually paper versions might get more expensive but by then maybe they’d be more comfortable to be without the option?
I’m a huge fan of reading my comics on my iPad. It’s preferable for all the reasons you outlined above. Now, it would be nice if the screen was just a fraction larger, but it’s not prohibitive to my enjoyment of reading from the screen.
I’m looking forward to the time that I can get my comics day and date online. It means I don’t have to be concerned about books selling out, or occasional mishaps like the book not being shipped to my local store.
The only issue holding me back is that I don’t want to take my business away from my local comic shop. I believe I shop at the exact same store that you do and the staff there couldn’t be nicer guys. They’re funny, helpful, and know their industry. That said, I’m running out of space in my house to store physical media and am ready to embrace an all-digital environment for this very reason. If it comes between stopping supporting their business and having a place to put my sneakers, my shoeware simply has to win out.
I find it unlikely that stores will offer digital sales. With current broadband speeds and the relative small file size of a comic, that seems too clumsy a distribution mode.
Futurist Ross Dawson has predicted that Australian newspapers would no longer have print editions in twelve years time (http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/newspapers-gone-by-2022-says-futurist/story-e6frg996-1225909450033). With more publications going online and primarily digital, paper supply costs are going to rise dramatically for those still keen on print editions. There’s no way that the comic industry will be able to stay afloat in such an environment, especially with circulation figures falling.
Digital comics are an issue of when, not if. Unfortunately it’s going to come at the expense of the comic shop experience.
You should check out Dan Barrett´s last post… Televised Revolution Podcast 135
The space issue is actually a really important one, I have five long boxes that don’t really fit anywhere and many more books floating around. Every week adds to the collection and there isn’t any outgoing apart from the occasional old New Mutants or Teen Titans that get walked on enough times to warrant their demise and subsequent trip to the bin (actually this is a very rare occurrence happening once every four or five years).
Like you and as I mentioned in the post one of the only things holding me back is that comic book Thursday morning experience, also there’s nothing like buying a bunch of 50c Robocop comics
This is why I wonder if there’s not a way to protect the humble comic book store and somehow include them in this brave new world?
Maybe I’ll bring this up tomorrow with them!
I’m not a luddite, but I don’t like digital “print” media. As was mentioned earlier, If I’m going to pay money, I want an object to hold. I have some comics that a now-deceased favorite uncle gave to me; They were my first real comics and they bring back lots of memories.
You just can’t think that way about a JPEG.
Plus, dislike the premise that I’d need to buy a piece of fragile technology that requires electricity to read something. I’ve never dropped a comic book and had my entire collection disappear.
It also make trading and lending impossible.
Oh, well, it’ll make even my Todd McFarlane 1990s Spider Man worth something, at least.
You should check out Arkonbey´s last post… Whew!
There’s an obvious and pointless argument to be had and made regarding digital versus traditional but it remains one of personal preference and I’m not here to convince anyone of that.
But I do note that I never thought I would step away from CDs and I have and I don’t miss them despite there being several discs that I’ll never get rid of for sentimental reasons.
There will always be a market for print, it’ll just get smaller and smaller, which based on current figures is already happening even without migration to digital.
I like to have actual books, but a friend of mine is going to Greece for 6 months and he was sure as hell happy with his e-reader which looked very nice. He saves kilo’s and kilo’s (not to mention the space) on books he would otherwise bring with him.
You should check out Arjan´s last post… Youtube saturday- Ou est le swimming pool -- Dance the way I feel
I used to want actual books but if I could convert my entire library to digital on a decent system I’d exchange them without a second thought!
I’ve got a couple of really old books where half of my feeling of value for them comes from them being old, that would vanish for the biggest part if they would be digitallized.
You should check out Arjan´s last post… Youtube saturday- Ou est le swimming pool -- Dance the way I feel