Where will this comicbook hobby be in 10 years?

[nearmint]

I do not think digital comics will replace the paper copies we have now, from the collectors standpoint digital comics are not the same as buying the book holding it in your hands reading it, then adding it your collection.

 

So basically I do not see much change in the hobby as it is now, I am sure digital will play a role, but a small role.

 

But you're assuming that future generations will "collect". Think of how LPs, or even CDs, used to be collected. The major purchasers of music these days are downloading.

 

I can't help but wonder if the concept of "collecting" is fading.

[Bunky Brian]

I do not think digital comics will replace the paper copies we have now, from the collectors standpoint digital comics are not the same as buying the book holding it in your hands reading it, then adding it your collection.

 

So basically I do not see much change in the hobby as it is now, I am sure digital will play a role, but a small role.

 

But you're assuming that future generations will "collect". Think of how LPs, or even CDs, used to be collected. The major purchasers of music these days are downloading.

 

I can't help but wonder if the concept of "collecting" is fading.

(thumbs u

As cool as vintage LP's are, not a hot bed of high dollar collecting going on, same with 8 tracks?

 

B

[Monstro]

10 years isn't that long, I'm going to go out on a limb and say things wont look a whole lot different from where the hobby is today.

[RedRaven]

I can't help but wonder if the concept of "collecting" is fading.

 

I've become quite the digital collector/hoarder.

 

Comic Books

------------------------------------------------------

Every Fawcett Comic from 1940-1954

Hundreds of Timelys including full runs of Mystic/CaptAmerica/Marvel Mystery

Warren Mags, full runs of Creepy,Eerie,Vampirella

 

Music

-------------------------------------------------------

12 gigabyte library of all kinds of , most I'll never listen to

 

Books

--------------------------------------------------------

around 2000 scifi and fantasy books in various digital formats

 

Arcade Games

--------------------------------------------------------

Huge fan of Mame and I have almost every Arcade Game

from 1977 onwards thanks to Mame.

 

Console Games

---------------------------------------------------------

Emulators and Roms for all the old Nintendo and Sego consoles

plus the Atari Lynx,NeoGeo, and the TurboGrafx.

 

 

Computer Games

-----------------------------------------------------------

Commodore 64 , and just a few PC games

 

Old RPG Games (Pen and Paper)

-------------------------------------------------------------

Every TSR product ever made -=- literally

Every issue of Dragon Magazine 1-around 150

All the old ICE Middle Earth books

 

 

So in short, digital collecting is friggin awesome and so much cheaper and easier than collecting the originals. It also removes the money aspect from the hobby and makes it just pure fun. That is the main reason I look forward to the decline of the hobby as it is and look forward to the way the hobby will be when digital is king.

 

[font:Comic Sans MS]Hell, now that I reread my post its allready obvius that I've switched to being a digital collector. I didnt even buy a paper comic last year.[/font]

[Davenport]

I do not think digital comics will replace the paper copies we have now, from the collectors standpoint digital comics are not the same as buying the book holding it in your hands reading it, then adding it your collection.

 

So basically I do not see much change in the hobby as it is now, I am sure digital will play a role, but a small role.

 

But you're assuming that future generations will "collect". Think of how LPs, or even CDs, used to be collected. The major purchasers of music these days are downloading.

 

I can't help but wonder if the concept of "collecting" is fading.

I'm guessing at some point comic books will merge with the larger genre of "vintage used magazines". Probably not in out lifetime, and certainly not in the next decade. But at some point I can envision collectors of "The Silver Surfer" or "Astonishing Stories" or "Argosy" or "Playboy" or " Vampirella" belonging to a shared hobby.

 

Will there always be people who pay large sums of money for the privilege of hiding old paper in the dark? Of course. How many people is the unknown.

[PrismaticSmoke]

One of the main reasons this hobby is not getting more younger people involved is the greed of most people trying to make a buck. How many dealer takes there stock and goes to the childrens hospital and donate books? Or run ads in School papers with discount coupons? Or Reward kids with A's on there report card 1 new release for each A? It is the responsibility of all store owners ...

 

Sorry, direct distribution killed the growth of this hobby with the youngsters. As soon as it became impossible to see/buy comics in grocery stores and minute-shops a bunch of potential customers were lost. Just my uninformed tunnel visioned view of what I think anyways.

 

You may be right, but the responsibility to bring in customers rests with the outlets. It is up to the owners of shops to constantly keep marketing and bringing in new customers. Yes there are other factors but I put the fact that the younger crowd is missing out on the greedy dealers who just cannot part with a dime to benefit the hobby and themselves.

[MR.COMICBOOK]

One thing to add is female readers will play a much larger role in the reading of comics as the male 18 to 24 audience has gone on to play videogames.

[Topnotchman]

I see it going into niche markets and superheroes losing thier appeal as thier core audience starts to get older.Also digital comics will be in play bigtime by then.I see Disney will play a big factor in all this.They are either going to make or break Marvel.

any thoughts?

I think fans who view and enjoy comic books as an artistic storytelling medium will be in for a real treat during the next decade.

 

Already digital scans allow readers massive exposure to comics from all eras. Whenever a portable color tablet viewer becomes common new generations can enjoy just about everything that's come before all over again. (will something come out during 2010 CES ? )

 

Also, the tech behind Avatar shows that just about anything imagined could make on screen. Look at stylish attempts like Sin City, Hellboy, or V and there's hope some quality "comic universe" epics may finally show up in theaters. (a photo-realistic CG Justice League movie? )

 

Paper is the traditional comic book delivery-medium, but there are some very exciting new mediums just starting to be explored. Who knows what the next generation of creators and artists will do with new tools and methods.

 

 

 

 

 

I agree with the new tech and higher quality movies will rejuvenate fans, and create new fans of the original comic books. With 2009 being an off year in my opinion with the films, we will only see bigger and better things to come.

 

[Agent 007]

I do not think digital comics will replace the paper copies we have now, from the collectors standpoint digital comics are not the same as buying the book holding it in your hands reading it, then adding it your collection.

 

So basically I do not see much change in the hobby as it is now, I am sure digital will play a role, but a small role.

 

But you're assuming that future generations will "collect". Think of how LPs, or even CDs, used to be collected. The major purchasers of music these days are downloading.

 

I can't help but wonder if the concept of "collecting" is fading.

 

sell now!!!!!!!!

[conditionfreak]

Was this CGC forum around in the year 2000?

 

If so, did anyone "save" a link to of predictions for the next ten years from back then?

 

Is the hobby a lot different now than it was then?

 

I would say that there is only one way this hobby will explode. If the Chinese all learn how to read english and start buying all of our collections.

 

I would say that there are several scenarios that could make this hobby implode. Y'all know the drill.

[Mr 9.8]

I would say that there is only one way this hobby will explode. If the Chinese all learn how to read english and start buying all of our collections.

 

I fear it will be the other way around. :ohnoez:

[Kevin76]

What will become of the comic hobby in 10 years? OK here it is...Comics will be more expensive than they are now.

[BillS25]

In 10 years I think we'll see...

 

...more streamlining of titles that actually get printed and a transition to digital format for those that are not so "profitable" in paper form but can be profitable in digital form.

 

...a grater gap in those who collect GA, AA and SA vs BA to Modern. The prices are a bit rough at times now never mind accounting for inflation and greed. Part of what made this hobby attainable in the past was when people let books change hands at the price they paid instead of at a higher price. Making money can be great but there's nothing like seeing someone get a book they will love and cherish because it was made attainable by a love for the hobby. I guess I'm a pay it forward softie.

 

...within the collecting community MUCH more specilization and segmentation of collecting. The broad range collector will become more of the minority due to the cost of books.

 

 

[akaSteveRogers]

Comics will be distributed digitally and we'll be arguing whether compressed comics is considered restoration.

 

[joe_collector]

In 10 years....

 

1) There will be fewer active collectors - that's a given

2) Ultra-rare, vintage GA/SA (pre-65), hyper-key books may actually be more expensive, as the hobby maniacs climb higher up the tree.

3) Common, late-SA to BA, high-grade will drop significantly in price. Keys will stagnate or drop.

4) CA and MA will be near-worthless, except for CGC-created anomalies like 9.9 and 10 single-Census copies, and even then ...

5) Mid and low-grade sales will likely still be humming along, albeit at today's stagnant prices.

6) To survive the decade, CGC will branch out into many new areas, covering more magazines/fan publications and pop-culture related items.

7) The monthly "comic pamphlet" as we know it will have ceased to exist, and other than digital and TPB sales, TV shows, direct-to-video/download productions and theatrical releases will attempt to keep the super-heroes alive.

8) This forum, if it's even still here in its present form, will enjoy significantly less traffic.

9) The sheer number of high-grade, OO and otherwise, SA and BA collections that come to market will be staggering, as the baby boomers seek retirement and divest themselves of non-essentials.

10) Due to this, there will be a natural competitive fallout between the many online consignment and auction houses, leaving fewer, but significantly larger, entities in their wake.

[drewincanada]

In 10 years....

 

1) There will be fewer active collectors - that's a given

2) Ultra-rare, vintage GA/SA (pre-65), hyper-key books may actually be more expensive, as the hobby maniacs climb higher up the tree.

3) Common, late-SA to BA, high-grade will drop significantly in price. Keys will stagnate or drop.

4) CA and MA will be near-worthless, except for CGC-created anomalies like 9.9 and 10 single-Census copies, and even then ...

5) Mid and low-grade sales will likely still be humming along, albeit at today's stagnant prices.

6) To survive the decade, CGC will branch out into many new areas, covering more magazines/fan publications and pop-culture related items.

7) The monthly "comic pamphlet" as we know it will have ceased to exist, and other than digital and TPB sales, TV shows, direct-to-video/download productions and theatrical releases will attempt to keep the super-heroes alive.

8) This forum, if it's even still here in its present form, will enjoy significantly less traffic.

9) The sheer number of high-grade, OO and otherwise, SA and BA collections that come to market will be staggering, as the baby boomers seek retirement and divest themselves of non-essentials.

10) Due to this, there will be a natural competitive fallout between the many online consignment and auction houses, leaving fewer, but significantly larger, entities in their wake.

 

I agree that HG prices will drop, but not just because the market will be flooded with HG boomer collections. I'm sure it's been discussed on the board before, so I won't belabor the point, but I think that CGC, for all the good its done for this hobby, has also inadvertently prompted a temporary rise in HG prices. CGC grading and the census have provided authoritative benchmarks for the collectors who relentlessly pursue the "best of the best" (benchmarks that they never had before CGC came along), and who regularly set new price records to ensure that they have the best possible collection. But when it comes to CGC grading and the census, "the best" is not a static thing. As more collections are slabbed, and as more books are pressed up into higher grade, the exclusivity – and value – of that ultra-HG collection has nowhere to go but down. The passing of time won't result in fewer "highest grade in census" books; it can only result in more.

 

I think that fact, more than anything, will affect prices in the next 10 years.

[MR.COMICBOOK]

In 10 years....

 

1) There will be fewer active collectors - that's a given

2) Ultra-rare, vintage GA/SA (pre-65), hyper-key books may actually be more expensive, as the hobby maniacs climb higher up the tree.

3) Common, late-SA to BA, high-grade will drop significantly in price. Keys will stagnate or drop.

4) CA and MA will be near-worthless, except for CGC-created anomalies like 9.9 and 10 single-Census copies, and even then ...

5) Mid and low-grade sales will likely still be humming along, albeit at today's stagnant prices.

6) To survive the decade, CGC will branch out into many new areas, covering more magazines/fan publications and pop-culture related items.

7) The monthly "comic pamphlet" as we know it will have ceased to exist, and other than digital and TPB sales, TV shows, direct-to-video/download productions and theatrical releases will attempt to keep the super-heroes alive.

8) This forum, if it's even still here in its present form, will enjoy significantly less traffic.

9) The sheer number of high-grade, OO and otherwise, SA and BA collections that come to market will be staggering, as the baby boomers seek retirement and divest themselves of non-essentials.

10) Due to this, there will be a natural competitive fallout between the many online consignment and auction houses, leaving fewer, but significantly larger, entities in their wake.

That may be the most important point you brought up, basically that group is the majority of the collectors, if they ever lose interest, the hobby will take a hit.

[goldust40]

In 10 years....

 

1) There will be fewer active collectors - that's a given

2) Ultra-rare, vintage GA/SA (pre-65), hyper-key books may actually be more expensive, as the hobby maniacs climb higher up the tree.

3) Common, late-SA to BA, high-grade will drop significantly in price. Keys will stagnate or drop.

4) CA and MA will be near-worthless, except for CGC-created anomalies like 9.9 and 10 single-Census copies, and even then ...

5) Mid and low-grade sales will likely still be humming along, albeit at today's stagnant prices.

6) To survive the decade, CGC will branch out into many new areas, covering more magazines/fan publications and pop-culture related items.

7) The monthly "comic pamphlet" as we know it will have ceased to exist, and other than digital and TPB sales, TV shows, direct-to-video/download productions and theatrical releases will attempt to keep the super-heroes alive.

8) This forum, if it's even still here in its present form, will enjoy significantly less traffic.

9) The sheer number of high-grade, OO and otherwise, SA and BA collections that come to market will be staggering, as the baby boomers seek retirement and divest themselves of non-essentials.

10) Due to this, there will be a natural competitive fallout between the many online consignment and auction houses, leaving fewer, but significantly larger, entities in their wake.

That may be the most important point you brought up, basically that group is the majority of the collectors, if they ever lose interest, the hobby will take a hit.

 

As long as the film studios are turning out comic-based movies there will be interest, but whether such things will help sustain the market is debatable. So essentially that's right.

[oakman29]

My frame of mind is to just enjoy it for what it is,don't speculate on what it will be or wont be in ten years.Comics will always be collectable,even more so if and when the digital age of comics takes effect.

[Bronty]

Was this CGC forum around in the year 2000?

 

 

I'm the first registered user of the comic boards here. As you can see from my date it started in 02.