Read your ARCHIE COMICS on FACEBOOK via the GRAPHICLY COMICS APP
Already considered a leader in the realm of digital comics, as The Huffington Post reports, Archie has now taken it one step further by integrating digital comics directly onto the Archie Facebook page, giving over one hundred thousand fans access to Archie’s digital library via Graphicly. Archie CEO Jon Goldwater expounds on this new initiative with this, “We want Archie to be available to everyone everywhere. We want to create a one-stop shop — an Archie “superstore” that’ll serve everyone’s needs. That’s the goal. Digital is part of that over-arching plan.”
Whether it’s the Archie Meets KISS crossover or Kevin Keller’s wedding in Life with Archie, one word keeps coming up again and again to describe the current state of the decades old publisher – Progressive. Capitalizing on this perception, Archie continues to go where no comic book publisher has gone before; stretching the limits of what is possible in the digital market and making it easier than ever for fans to have access to Archie’s array of titles.
In terms of Facebook numbers, Archie is in league with the top publishers having the third highest fan base online overall illustrating Archie’s viral reach. This should see continued growth as digital sales continue to rise. Goldwater states, “Our Archie Comics app, which is powered by the team at iVerse, has been downloaded close to 4 million times, and our comics are routinely among the most downloaded titles.” To top it off, Archie will also launch the first-ever digital superhero universe with our Red Circle Comics app just to cover all bases. In addition, Robot 6 picked up on this major step in digital distribution.
Aspen Comics Now Available on Nook Courtesy of Graphicly
Aspen Comics is expanding its accessibility in the digital comics marketplace by now offering their titles through Barnes and Noble’s popular Nook devices and apps, courtesy of their digital distribution partner, Graphicly. The move marks another platform fans of the publisher can seek to purchase Aspen titles while also presenting them to a new audience through Barnes and Noble’s massive online bookstore. Aspen Editor-in-Chief states:
“We’re excited to work alongside Graphicly to deliver our wonderful library of Aspen titles to a new audience and platform on the Nook. In addition to our launch collections, we will be working quickly to add to the number of books available, so fans can look forward to seeing even more new collected series on the horizon shortly.”
Aspen titles included in the initial launch on the Nook include: The Aspen Extended Edition, Executive Assistant: Iris Volume One, Fathom Volume One, Fathom: Cannon Hawke, Fathom: Dawn of War, Fathom: Kiani Volume One, Shrugged Volume One, and Soulfire: Volume One.
The initial launch titles will be offered as complete collected editions only and prices may vary. For more information on purchasing Aspen titles for the Nook please check www.barnesandnoble.com. For more information on Graphicly please check www.graphicly.com and for more information on Aspen Comics please check www.aspencomics.com
Following Graphic.ly‘s announcement of hopping on the Newsstand wave with the release of iOS5 for Apple products we released an article calling into question the new digital news stand. The function available for Apple products brings subscription services to users. The general process has the user purchasing the app, which gives you the latest issue, then each month the user is charged, regardless if a new issue is released.
Questions were raised by me as to what happens if a publisher were to skip a month, but also how this is possibly a bum deal for publishers if they were to double ship in a month. It’s now apparent, publishers can really get screwed by unscrupulous users whether or not they double ship. There’s a flaw in the process that allows you to get two issues (or more) for the price of one. Here’s how:
Purchase the app a bit before a new issue is released – The apps usually run $1.99 to $2.99
The app purchase gives you the latest issue (the month’s before)
The release day comes and you get the latest issue
Cancel the subscription before you’re charged again.
Profit…. er….
Really I should of thought of this before, but while working through how Marvel double shipping comics in 2012 would function in this sort of environment. The answer is, if Marvel had Newsstand subscriptions you’d get not two issues for the price of one, but three. For those saying I’m wrong in this, it’s been done already and verified.
Have fun folks and don’t say we never gave you anything….
GEN Manga is now available on the multifaceted Graphicly
GENwill be available on Graphicly nationwide Nov, 2011
NEW YORK, NY – GEN Manga Entertainment, Inc. announces the release of GEN 1 on Graphicly starting Nov., 2011, for Free!
Graphicly is the premiere site for reading and finding the best digital comics. With apps for Facebook, Apple, Android, and also available on Barnes & Noble’s Nook, they have effectively covered the digital market.
GEN will now be added to Graphicly’s ranks. Along side of major powerhouses Marvel, Image, and dozens of independent publishers, GEN Manga takes its seat. Utilizing Graphicly’s masterful way of formatting the digital experience, GEN can now be read in a panel by panel guided experience!
This month, GEN will also release more than 900 pages of content for only 2.99! This is an unprecedented value. Readers can get the first anthology ranking in at this size for true original underground Japanese manga at genmanga.com! But as an added bonus, readers who purchase the massive volume will get a bonus download of extras that include exclusive peeks at the elusive creators, never seen before bonus full color illustrations, as well as production and sketch work of the artists. GEN will give its American readership a peek deeper into real Japanese indie creators.
VS Aliens, is also available this month from GEN, for only .99 a download for the complete series! All those readers out there that want to find out what happens in the cute “moe” characters of VS Aliens can download the complete series in one easy to manage file. Do you want to believe?
GEN stories are published nowhere else in the world. These stories are created by the elusive doujin creators in Tokyo’s secret underground circles, otherwise known in the west as independent creators and hard core fans.
Presenting new indie manga circles from Japan, GEN, a monthly publication,will be released in the US and Japan simultaneously. Digital format and print editions for GEN are available now. Based in New York, GEN Manga Entertainment (www.genmanga.com) endeavors to publish new and unseen graphic work from Japan, being in the unique position to bring readers work first, more original and untamed manga will be sure to come!
Graphicly Announces Acquisition of Double Feature Application Four Star Studios Titles Coming to Graphicly
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – November 2, 2011 – Graphicly is excited to announce that it has acquired Double Feature, a top independent comic reader mobile application from Four Star Studios. The well respected application and its developer will become part of Graphicly. The application will allow Graphicly to bring the innovative interface and functionality of Double Feature to their mobile applications, enable a more diverse catalog of content. Lead Developer Josh Emmons will join the Graphicly team.
Double Feature was the first mobile application to truly give independent creators the ability to showcase their work by bundling their comics with pencils, inks and scripts in an innovative platform. Four Star Studios titles will be available on the Graphicly platform, including iOS devices like the Apple iPad, Android devices including the Nook Color and Kindle Fire, and the web including Facebook.com and will continue to be available through the Double Feature application, currently available for iPad.
“When we evaluated mobile readers on that market, we just kept coming back to Double Feature asthe application we would most like to emulate. It was from that fandom, that our conversations with Four Star Studios began,” said Micah Baldwin, CEO of Graphicly. “The more we talked the more it was clear that our shared vision for publishers and creators almost required that we work more closely together. Adding Joshua Emmons to our already deep team is just amazing icing on an awesome cake.”
“We’re all really excited about this deal! Obviously, we’ll get to improve Double Feature taking advantage of Graphicly’s resources,” said Tim Seeley, co-founder of Four Star Studios and creator of Hack/Slash, “But also, we know Graphicly truly gets what we’re doing with digital comics. Some of our influence will flow back in the other direction, too, and that’s good for everyone.”
“When it came time for Four Star to publish digitally, we were lucky we could build our own app. A lot indies out there can’t.” said Joshua Emmons, developer of Double Feature and new Graphicly employee, “Even from my very first talks with Graphicly, it’s been clear they’re committed to enabling these creators. I can’t wait to employ everything I’ve learned from DoubleFeature in the furtherance of that goal!”
Four Star Studios content available now through Graphicly includes:
• Action Double Feature #1 featuring “The Answer” by Dennis Hopeless and Mike Norton and “Jack Kraken” by Tim Seeley Ross Campbell
• Science Fiction Double Feature #2 featuring “Brigantine” by Joshua Emmons and Mike Norton and “Piper 2.0″ by Tom Stillwell and Jethro Morales
Additional titles are coming soon, and will be available through all Graphicly channels, as well as the current Double Feature application.
About Graphicly
Graphicly is a cutting-edge entertainment digital content delivery system and community platform, providing an immersive solution to tell, share and collaborate around story. With more than 300 publishers and 4,000 creators from major publishers such as Marvel Comics, Image Comics, BOOM! Studios, Top Cow and IDW Publishing to indie creators from around the globe, Graphicly is the leading story-telling and sharing platform online. The Graphicly Network includes dozens of leading websites and blogs, mobile applications including the iPhone, iPad and Android devices including the Barnes and Noble NOOKcolor and the Amazon Kindle Fire; and an industry leading HTML5 web app. For more information, please visit www.graphicly.com
About Four Star Studios
Four Star Studios (fourstarstudios.com) wants to tell you great stories! They are a small creative collective of artists, writers, designers, and developers all dedicated to the Chicago ethic of “Deeds not Words”. Exemplifying this motto, in 2011 Four Star developed and released Double Feature (doublefeaturecomics.com), a digital comic book anthology and reader that has set the bar for what digital comics can be. Four Star continues to curate this collection and develop its many in-house properties: Hack/Slash, Battlepug, City of Sand, The Answer, Jack Kraken, Kid Cthulhu, RadBots, and Brigantine. For more information, please visit fourstarstudios.com or contact support@fourstarstudios.com.
A few hours ago I posted statistics of the self-identified comic book fans on Facebook. During this same time period, I also looked at who the fans of digital comics are. Are they different from the regular comic book fans? The answer is yes, yes they are. Using the same method, but different search terms I pulled the exact same data for comparison. The universe is much smaller to search from, but there’s enough that only at the extreme edges are there issues with the reporting.
Facebook Digital Comic Book Fan Population: Over 7,540 in the United States
You can see the number is much smaller than the 2.6 million population for the general comic book fans. The terms are much more narrow, searching for brands instead of generic terms. Keep in mind, these are the fans of Graphic.ly, comiXology, iVerse, etc., not web comics. That’s a whole other population in my opinion. The goal here is to try to figure out who buys digital comics.
Below you’ll see the breakdown of the population as well as a comparison to the general comic book fan population. You’ll see there’s some significant differences, much more than the smaller Spanish speaking population (only 1.59%, compared to the general’s 2.14%).
Gender and Education
Interestingly enough, digital fans skew much more male and are more educated than their mass fan brethren. The average population is 29.12% college grads while digital fans are 54.38% college grads. Men dominate as well, making up a little over 81% of the population.
Age
Age is the second area you absolutely see a difference. The general population is primarily under the age of 40 and mostly under the age of 30, digital comic book fans are between 26 and 41 and peak in the 34-37 age. This is over a decade difference compared to the general population. The size of the populations are much evenly distributed between ages 22 and 45.
Notice the digital peak.
Now compare the two data sets:
Relationship Status
With an”older population” you’d expect there’d be a greater chance they’d be married and that’s reflected in the data. 41.33% is married compared to 21.19% of the general comic book fans. In digital, the married population has primarily grown out of the”single” status and partially out of the”in relationship” status.
Gender Interest
You can see the digital has a pretty decent shift from the general comic book fan base. They’re interested in the opposite gender in greater percentages.
October 26, 2011 (Dallas, Texas) – This is the year for something old and something new at Viper Comics. Earlier this year, the Texas-based publisher enjoyed an uber-successful relaunch of classic comics Inspector Gadget and Johnny Test at this year’s Comic Con. But Viper will round out 2011 at the other end of the distribution spectrum: digital.
“Digital isn’t coming,” says Viper President, Jessie Garza. “It’s here. Not only has the economy hit the comic business but even our most hardcore fans want to read their comics with the same tools they use to work, create and communicate. Digital has so many possibilities. We just can’t wait to get started.”
Viper is leaping into the digital revolution in two ways. First, they will make their library of existing books-from oldies like Gadget to cult favorites like Middleman-available in digital format. This will ensure fans have ready access to their favorites at any time and a whole new fan base can discover Viper books they might have missed.
And second, Viper will begin to create a new line of comics expressly for digital distribution.
Beginning with Five Senses, a gritty crime story about a murder witness bent on solving the crime while trying to keep the mysterious killer from stealing his five senses, Viper’s entire catalog of comic books will be available in digital as well as paper formats.
“Our writers and artists are stellar,” says Editor-in-Chief, Dale Mettam, “and it’s time to give both our established and up-and-coming creators a new medium to really strut their stuff. We think our fans are going to love what we’ve come up with.”
Don’t worry though if you’re a print lover. “Over the years, Viper has built many lasting friendships with small comic stores. We still have books that will go straight to print on our slate of upcoming projects,” Mettam went on. “However, the digital technology allows us to take more risks with projects and open the door for more up-and-coming talent that perhaps wouldn’t get the chance otherwise.”
“We’re a small indie publisher,” added Garza, “so anything that allows us to push the creative limits is something we’re equally committed to explore.”
For Mettam, this new medium hits close to home as he is the author of Viper’s Halloween digital release, Nightmares in Oz, a modern-and pretty gnarly-spin on the Oz tales we all thought we knew.
Shannon Hilson, of MoreHorror.com said of Nightmares in Oz,
“Nightmares in Oz offers a fresh and frightening new twist on an old favorite. Stunning artwork and truly creepy characters help bring Osmann Grove, Kansas to life in a way horror fans and comic book lovers alike won’t want to miss.”
Additionally, Viper will release its reader app making downloading and launching a comic just a click away. Until then, readers will be able to get a hold of books via iVerse, Graphicly, Comixology, Kindle and the Viper website.
About Viper Comics
Viper Comics has been publishing comic books and graphic novels since July 2003. Their debut title, Dead@17, was an instant hit and was noted as a Top 10 Hot Comic in Wizard Magazine. Viper has since released a number of successful books, including Daisy Kutter, a critically acclaimed series that was nominated for a Harvey Award in 2006 and was also named a top pick for young adults by the American Library Association. Viper has published over 100 comic books and 40 graphic novels. Viper has had four graphic novels recommended by the American Library Association: The Middleman (ABC Family TV Show), Daisy Kutter, Emily Edison, and Oddly Normal.
