So, when Image went day-and-date, I insisted that not every publisher would go day-and-date immediately, and, exact words, “Marvel will hold out to the bitter, bitter end.”
Guess we’re at the bitter, bitter end, because Marvel just announced that they’re going digital day-and-date. Maybe this was unsurprising considering that, after refusing and refusing and refusing to be on Android, DC had one great month and suddenly, Android had all the Marvel comics it could handle. Marvel likes money, but hates spending it, as we’ve detailed elsewhere. Also helping is that DC demonstrated that digital sales don’t cannibalize print sales: it turns out lots of people are willing to drop three bucks on a comic that aren’t willing to hit the FLCS, although Barnes & Noble isn’t happy about graphic novels being sold digitally.
But don’t expect this to be like DC’s sudden all-in push: in typical Marvel style it’s going to be clumsy and incomplete. Marvel will be launching day-and-date on a comic-by-comic basis: as old story arcs wrap up, the new ones will be launching day-and-date digital. You know, to make this as confusing as humanly possible and to avoid the costs of scanning recent back issues, because God forbid a customer would pick up a story arc and think “Hey, I’d like to read the beginning of this!”
Also, third-party licensed comics like those “Anita Blake” comics and Marvel’s MAX line? You’ll have to wait until they feel like it.
One thing Marvel is doing that I like, and that DC will likely be following suit with, is including a free code for a digital comic if you purchase a print one. And with this, the last real hold-out seems to be Dark Horse, and I doubt that lasts long. Welcome to the future, true believers.
[ via Gizmodo ]