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LucasLand

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 6, 2002
759
93
New England
I have a feeling the iPad is going to turn the comic industry upside down. Have you seen how great they look on this thing? I feel sorry for any comic book dealer out there. If i were them I'd sell their business now!
 
Just as their are Apple fan bois, there are comic fan bois and they will more than likely stick to the paper version.

However, that being said, it may be a good idea to start collecting comic books, in 20 years (according to your prediction) you could make some real $$$
 
IMO what is more likely to happen is that past collectors like my self will be more apt to start reading digital editions so we don't have 20 long boxes of comics that I wives nag us to get rid of. I quit collecting about 8 years ago mainly for a space reason. Probably pick up new readers that don't want the perceived stigma of being seeing going into the comic shop or are just scared to as some shops draw a "strange" crowd. There is a reason most shops have separate rooms for gaming (not trying to be insulting I used to be one of them)

At least for now I don't see the mass exodus of traditional readers to digital for many different reasons but mainly going to the shop to pick up your weekly stash was always a little exciting, maybe you see some new title and snag the last #1 alternate cover, ect. Also most store handle gaming, swag & other related items, maybe an artist signing ect.
 
I used to read them a lot, Spiderman was my favourite. I will miss the excitement of buying the new one, touching it, flicking the pages... You cannot replace everything with digital content. Even subsidised album art projects fail.

A few wealthy collectors agree with me. There were a couple of records being broken recently for classic comic books.
 
Thought comic collecting died 15 years ago or so with Batman 500. :)

If anything, the iPad could increase the readership for comics. Not so good for store owners (the 6 that are left), but great for content creators---especially independents.
 
Evolve or go the way of the dodo.

If the comic book industry is serious about continuing on, they'll find a way to continue putting a product of sorts into consumer's hands (or hard drives).
 
I see a future where there are single stores that sell comics, vinyl albums, tapes, DVDs, books, photographic film... kind of like a catch-all for all things "gone digital".
 
I doubt kill

"maybe" effect. for me though it would be positive if anything. Cause for every person that stops buying paper, they would probably gain digital readers that never would've purchased paper like me
 
I just loaded this app on my iPhone and I got to say it is really well done. Marvel has a winner with this app.
 
For those who collect comics as an investment, that pretty much destroys the future of the market beyond what already exists. That's kind of sad. When I was a kid I made a bundle of money buying and selling comic books, which let me buy more to read.
 
Looks good on the iphone too. I still think they're too highly priced when for the cost of six comics on the ipad/phone I can buy the collection from amazon.

But comics readership have been in terminal decline for many years. The biggest selling monthly comics shift barely over 100,000 copies these days, a far cry from the million-selling hay-day. If readers like the ipad open up comics to new readers then I'm all for it.

Marvel knows that comic shops are dead ends and that the current crop of readers of the physical monthly pamphlets will pay anything for them, but hopefully they'll see more sense in the digital realm: a monthly fee to read all of Marvel's X-Men comics? Sold!
 
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