Comic books have finally gone fully digital with DC’s release of Same Day Digital. The program will release digital versions of new comic books the same day that they are available in print. The comics will cost $2.99 and drop down to $1.99 after four weeks.
Other companies and publishing houses have experimented with digital comics, but Same Day Digital marks the first all-in bet that digital is the future of comic books.
The Same Day Digital program will be available on a range of platforms including the iOS family of devices, Android and personal computers. DC Comics pushed its digital launch to coincide with the New 52, a massive overhaul and reimagining of 52 of their most iconic characters.
Marquee names like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and more received costume redesigns, as well as updated origin stories. All 52 characters had their comic series reset to issue #1.
“I think part of this whole initiative was breaking down those doors and one was by changing the continuity and streamlining the shorelines and the second part of that… was doing digital delivery, right?” says Jim Lee, DC’s co-publisher and the man behind the New 52 character redesigns.
Mashable had a chance to mess around with the app on an iPad. The app is presently bare bones with simple scroll and zoom options. One tap brings up navigation tools, including a bottom bar with all the pages, and a settings option where you can automate page turns or set preferences on speech bubbles. The final panel is a pop-up box asking users to rate the comic and directing them to purchase additional comics in the series or browse through other titles.
It’s clear more features are on the way, including more integration with social networks and possibly a subscription option.
Digital has allowed DC to be more creative with its comics. The DVD release of the Green Lantern movie, for example, contains a digital preview for a comic book. The digital team is also experimenting with deluxe digital editions, like issues that come with additional sketches or alternate covers.
“I’d love to think this was a pure genius on one person or a group of people’s part,” says Hank Kanalz, SVP of Digital at DC. “And it was just like, ‘duh.’”
There are some concerns Same Day Digital will cannibalize print sales. But DC has set up — with its digital partner Comixology — a DC digital storefront retailers can put on their websites. Retailers will get 30% of any digital purchases without worrying about over-ordering copies or dealing with unsold copies.
“It’s a tough sell, because you’re talking to real life people with real life establishments and real life stores and you don’t want to introduce something that’s going to put them out of business,” Lee says.
Comics are facing the same tricky fate that befell compact discs, and DC is trying to get in on digital before piracy or third parties (as seen with iTunes and music) beats the company to it.
Digital sales have been doing well so far, according to Kanalz. Issues across the DC canon have been selling — this includes the New 52 batch to comics from five or 10 years ago.
The future of Same Day Digital is still very much in the air. DC has talked about whether to include more interactive features but so far that’s off the table. There’s also some discussion on how to optimize content for small devices like smartphones where a full-length comic book might be too long (or too small) to enjoy.
There are also headaches for illustrators and writers to consider, says Lee. Panels are stretched or compressed to fill the size of the platform. Massive double-page spreads are shrunk down, or minuscule details are blown up to huge proportions.
DC comics has a lot of things to consider, but Same Day Digital has been paying off so far. “Sure, there are people that are scared of digital and there are others that embrace it as much as I do,” Kanalz says. “We all love comics and that’s the key.”
More About: comics, digital delivery, Social Media, TechFor more Media coverage:Follow Mashable Media on TwitterBecome a Fan on FacebookSubscribe to the Media channelDownload our free apps for Android, Mac, iPhone and iPad
Posted on Fri, 02 Sep 2011 16:42:14 +0000 at http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/1KR4QJpA1g4/
Comments: http://mashable.com/2011/09/02/dc-comics-same-day-digital/#comments
Other companies and publishing houses have experimented with digital comics, but Same Day Digital marks the first all-in bet that digital is the future of comic books.
The Same Day Digital program will be available on a range of platforms including the iOS family of devices, Android and personal computers. DC Comics pushed its digital launch to coincide with the New 52, a massive overhaul and reimagining of 52 of their most iconic characters.
Marquee names like Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Wonder Woman and more received costume redesigns, as well as updated origin stories. All 52 characters had their comic series reset to issue #1.
“I think part of this whole initiative was breaking down those doors and one was by changing the continuity and streamlining the shorelines and the second part of that… was doing digital delivery, right?” says Jim Lee, DC’s co-publisher and the man behind the New 52 character redesigns.
Mashable had a chance to mess around with the app on an iPad. The app is presently bare bones with simple scroll and zoom options. One tap brings up navigation tools, including a bottom bar with all the pages, and a settings option where you can automate page turns or set preferences on speech bubbles. The final panel is a pop-up box asking users to rate the comic and directing them to purchase additional comics in the series or browse through other titles.
It’s clear more features are on the way, including more integration with social networks and possibly a subscription option.
Digital has allowed DC to be more creative with its comics. The DVD release of the Green Lantern movie, for example, contains a digital preview for a comic book. The digital team is also experimenting with deluxe digital editions, like issues that come with additional sketches or alternate covers.
“I’d love to think this was a pure genius on one person or a group of people’s part,” says Hank Kanalz, SVP of Digital at DC. “And it was just like, ‘duh.’”
There are some concerns Same Day Digital will cannibalize print sales. But DC has set up — with its digital partner Comixology — a DC digital storefront retailers can put on their websites. Retailers will get 30% of any digital purchases without worrying about over-ordering copies or dealing with unsold copies.
“It’s a tough sell, because you’re talking to real life people with real life establishments and real life stores and you don’t want to introduce something that’s going to put them out of business,” Lee says.
Comics are facing the same tricky fate that befell compact discs, and DC is trying to get in on digital before piracy or third parties (as seen with iTunes and music) beats the company to it.
Digital sales have been doing well so far, according to Kanalz. Issues across the DC canon have been selling — this includes the New 52 batch to comics from five or 10 years ago.
The future of Same Day Digital is still very much in the air. DC has talked about whether to include more interactive features but so far that’s off the table. There’s also some discussion on how to optimize content for small devices like smartphones where a full-length comic book might be too long (or too small) to enjoy.
There are also headaches for illustrators and writers to consider, says Lee. Panels are stretched or compressed to fill the size of the platform. Massive double-page spreads are shrunk down, or minuscule details are blown up to huge proportions.
DC comics has a lot of things to consider, but Same Day Digital has been paying off so far. “Sure, there are people that are scared of digital and there are others that embrace it as much as I do,” Kanalz says. “We all love comics and that’s the key.”
More About: comics, digital delivery, Social Media, TechFor more Media coverage:Follow Mashable Media on TwitterBecome a Fan on FacebookSubscribe to the Media channelDownload our free apps for Android, Mac, iPhone and iPad
Posted on Fri, 02 Sep 2011 16:42:14 +0000 at http://feeds.mashable.com/~r/Mashable/~3/1KR4QJpA1g4/
Comments: http://mashable.com/2011/09/02/dc-comics-same-day-digital/#comments
