New Comics - Why is there no competition?

[JimShelley]

But more likely, he was operating on the solipsist's version of the Amazon algorithm.  "I also bought..."

Hahahah! That's a funny way to put it, but I bet you anything, that's how he arrived at that recommendation!

[Drahken]

One place to look for many of these answers is the asian comics scene, it is completely different from the american one.
Japanese manga doesn't have these ever-living entities like batman or spiderman which have little consistancy, go one forever, repeat in cycles, have different writers and artists for every single issue, etc, etc. Instead each series is locked to (and owned by, in at least most cases) a single writer/artist or a small group of writers/artists (generally, the same person will both write AND draw the comic), and runs it's course within a limited span (rarely more than a couple years). When a series reaches it's climax (or gets cancelled), that's it. If the series was successful enough, the mangaka (artist/writer) might do a sequel series or a remake/reimagining series.
As for the publishers, they're more like book publishers in the US rather than comic publishers. The publishers don't own franchises like superman or the hulk, they just publish the work of contracted mangaka. A mangaka can even take their work to another publisher if the relationship with the current one turns sour (depending on the exact terms of the contract). Comics are published periodically in anthology style magazines. Most are later republished in collections of just that one title (similar to TPBs).
Some manga publishers also publish online editions, and others publish exclusively online. Korea meanwhile has a thriving webcomics culture. They publish ongoing stories, and often take advantage of the digital format by having pages of unlimited dimensions. A single page image might be the equivalent of 10 or 15 "pages" long.


I think what the american comics industry needs in order to shake it up is a large scale anthology publisher. People could then buy a single publication and get a slew of different comics to try out, they could then buy TPBs of their favorites and/or continue to get the anthology editions.

[CharlieRock]

I think what the american comics industry needs in order to shake it up is a large scale anthology publisher. People could then buy a single publication and get a slew of different comics to try out, they could then buy TPBs of their favorites and/or continue to get the anthology editions.

Funny you should mention that. Shonen Jump used to be published everywhere (grocery stores, etc.) and was an anthology of manga. But it went to all digital so I don't know if it was not selling well enough to stay in print or what.

[John C]

I actually had high hopes that DC's Showcase format (five hundred-ish pages, line-art only, square-bound) would evolve into a budget anthology format.  There's a million angles to work, obviously, but I figured maybe do all the month's Superman-related stories, Batman's, and then pairings of the second-stringers, all the teams, the limited titles and launches (a genuine Showcase), and so forth.  And, since it's an anthology, any time you get a prima donna artist who slacks off on his work, you give everybody a "special treat" of a story dusted off from the archives.

Another (more marketing-friendly, consumer-surly) approach would be to headline the flagship characters in as many of the books as possible to get the suckers to buy the entire line to try anything out, and you'd name them after the classic titles.  Action Showcase would star Superman, and be backed by the more action-oriented heroes, like the Flash.  Detective would be Batman, plus the noir side of the stable.  Lather, rinse, repeat.

Either way, basically a gigantic version of the Golden Age, 64-page anthologies.  Smarter would be to make it a quasi-social thing, where you get the fans to talk about what worked and what didn't work about each book (heavily moderated), and maybe allow people to submit work for use in upcoming issues.

[Yoc]

And here's the exact kind of thing I was worried could happen if one 'rents' scans.

http://comicsbeat.com/jmanga-shuts-down-taking-all-the-manga-you-bought-with-it/

-Yoc

[Geo (RIP)]

Make mine paper please. Yes I agree with Yoc on this, they can take it away anytime with no recourse for you the buyer. Bad business practise though.

[paw broon]

Bad business practice indeed.  What I don't understand - and be gentle with me if I am showing my ignorance here - I have bought some comics fro Comixology and Izneo.  I can access them and read them on my tablet off-line.  Now if the site turned off, like the manga one, those titles should remain on my tablet.  Or is my naivity showing?
And as for competition, just have a look at the European market.  Lots of publishers producing and translating G.N.'s into other languages, now incl. English from Cine Books.  Everything you could want, apart from superheroes.

[Yoc]

If it's 'cloud based' sharing like this Maga place was - they will be gone if the company goes broke.
If you can actually download a file you are Ok from what I understand.

[chaard]

In another thread, member Roygbiv666 pointed me to this article: http://www.comicsalliance.com/2011/08/26/minimum-wage-price-of-comics/

It makes a telling argument: Comics sales are 'way down because prices are 'way high, compared to US minimum wage. Said minimum wage was established exactly when the first Superman comic hit the stand, so there's a good context for historical comparison. Comics prices were cheapest about the time Fantastic Four came out in 1964. Prices for similar-size comics now are relatively 4x-6x higher than then -- so a comparable burger-flipper who could afford 8-12 comics a week then can only afford 2 now.

And THAT'S why we don't see more competition in paper comics. The publishers have priced themselves out of mass markets and only produce boutique items. Prices of legal digital comics are 'way high also. And that's why we love free downloads here, right?

[Yoc]

The Gutters commented on the death of JManga
http://www.the-gutters.com/comic/393-mike-luckas

[John C]

And THAT'S why we don't see more competition in paper comics. The publishers have priced themselves out of mass markets and only produce boutique items. Prices of legal digital comics are 'way high also.

Actually, in any other industry, that's a beacon for competition.  The embedded companies always claim otherwise, then they're overthrown.

The most recent example I can think of is the "tablet computer."  The iPad was, and still is, a boutique item.  It's a nice gadget, as far as such things go, and Apple tried to make it sound like there's no way to do it without them, because of the high costs.  But oh, what's that?  A fifty dollar tablet that works almost as well that you can buy at the corner drugstore...?

Especially digital, remember, comics arguably cost nothing but time.  You don't need money to write or draw the stories, and even distribution isn't expensive until you grow your audience.

[narfstar]

comixology offers free hosting of your digital comics to sell. They get half you get half of sales.

[Yoc]

So they are offering to help you resell scans you've bought from them?
That wasn't something I expected to hear.

[John C]

I assume they mean "comics you created," not "comics you bought."  Given all the fighting over DRM and whether you actually buy digital media (rather than "licensing" it), I doubt they think it's legal to resell at all.

[narfstar]

YES your own creations