Is CBG just about done? How about Overstreet?

[Silver]

I got my latest issue of CBG in the mail yesterday. I have seen new comics bigger than the latest issues of CBG (okay, a slight exageration)

 

Is CGB on life support?

 

And what is this rumor I hear that this is the last Gemstone OS Price Guide and that they are in discussions to sell the guide?

 

Both of these are kinda too bad, been buying both for over 30 years.

 

What do you guys know?

 

[chrisco37]

It seems like they've been on life support for a few years now. I dropped my sub a few years back (right after they made the change to the monthly format).

 

Was "fun" as a weekly pub (I still have a few issues - the "Dupcak" issue and the issue where there was a pic of a group of us right before the original Forum Dinner in Philly).

[NightGallery1]

I let my subscription to CBG lapse about five years ago. Late last year I decided to resubscribe and was shocked at how anemic the magazine had become - it's a mere shell of its former self. Sad, because I really used to look forward to reading the latest issue.

[Subliminal]

I enjoy the magazine and I'm also dismayed by its recent slim down but I'll continue to subscribe and support it rather than abandon ship and hasten its demise.

 

 

[Bronty]

so they are selling the guide huh? god they ran that thing into the ground the last five or ten years.

[Silver]

so they are selling the guide huh? god they ran that thing into the ground the last five or ten years.

 

They are releasing it at the San Diego Comic Con, months after it is normally released.

 

 

[*paull*]

OSPG = worthless. I won't miss it.

[NP_Gresham]

All forms of news related print media have been on life-support for several years.

Even the NYT is in panic mode, they are going to start charging for on-line content starting next year. Time, Newsweek, they are all hurting.

 

[HouseofComics.Com]

CBG could be in trouble, though a big part of the slimming down was just them finally dumping the price guide (which I hated). I'd think this publication has a lot of things against it. The audience is aging but the only people who will buy ads are current publishers. It is not at all effective to advertise back issues in there, I tried in 2003 and 2004 and it was sad.

 

I'm sure OPG is still nicely profitable. Gemstone may have other problems but OPG isn't it. And I find it invaluable. If you're a specialist in one area who spends a lot of time following prices, yeah, you know the market better than Overstreet does. But for a generalist interested in comics of all types 1930s-1970s, it's very useful.

 

I'm sure that 3-4 of us board members could team up and run the OPG ourselves quite profitably for the next 20 years. (Not that we'd want to buy it...)

[the blob]

yeah, it would seem that it is hard not to make money with the OPG. you get free input from the vast board of advisors. sell advertising. tweak some prices from last year. update a few charts. even if they only sell a few thousand copies a year (and I suspect it is way more than that) the costs are pretty minimal as you have last year's book as a template. plenty of books get published with smaller print-runs. OPG is hardly useless for informational purposes like the artist, 1st appearances, stuff of that nature. granted, you don't need to get a new one for that every year. as for prices...take everything with a grain of salt and discount (or price at a premium) accordingly. it is one data set in the pricing picture as far as I'm concerned. the first one I look at and then adjust based on market realities.

[plady69]

Funny you should mention this Silver since I was thinking of canceling my subscription next time its up. It's pretty worthless with the Internet these days and the days of buying, selling and trading in it are long gone.

 

I have been a subscriber since year two...

[G.A.tor]

print is dead, as many have reported... just doesn't make any sense any more, in today's instant info, instant gratification world, to still print weekly and monthly's...

 

now, an annual guide, with advertiser info, and reports, etc (like OSPG) that, I will continue to support and I suspect we will continue to see produced

[the blob]

alter ego has a lot more content (though i wonder how they survive as well), though it would be nice if they dabbled in more stuff into the 70's and 80's. no need for a monthly price guide magazine though. ebay and the chatter on boards gives you a good sense of when a particular item is hot --- a heck of a lot sooner than any monthly.

[ComicConnoisseur]

print is dead, as many have reported... just doesn't make any sense any more, in today's instant info, instant gratification world, to still print weekly and monthly's...

now, an annual guide, with advertiser info, and reports, etc (like OSPG) that, I will continue to support and I suspect we will continue to see produced

Interesting, how come comics seem to be immune to this? I read more then ever thanks to the internet(blogs,newspapers,espn.com).Somehow comics have avoided this for now, For now as the Ipad lurks around the corner.

 

[Shadow]

Even though I always buy the OSPG, they need to seriously examine an on-line format. You'd pay $20 a year to subscribe. It's potential is great.

[Dale Roberts]

OSPG = worthless. I won't miss it.

 

Actually, it is hardly worthless to a dealer. You can turn directly to a page and get an idea of what a book is worth. Any book. To a dealer, it is still a very useful tool. If you are looking to value a collection, it would be never ending to try to find all the prices on line.

[sckao]

OSPG = worthless. I won't miss it.

 

Actually, it is hardly worthless to a dealer. You can turn directly to a page and get an idea of what a book is worth. Any book. To a dealer, it is still a very useful tool. If you are looking to value a collection, it would be never ending to try to find all the prices on line.

 

Imagine you had a computer in front of you and you're grading/pricing a bunch of books.

 

Then imagine saying "Avengers 133" and having that exact comic show up with all the Grades/Values from Overstreet and GPA. (And information on variants, cover scan, and notes on first appearances or notable events.

 

That's the future. (thumbs u

 

It'll save time and it'll be more relevant.

 

(One thing I hate doing when grading/pricing is thumbing through Overstreet to get to the right page.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Dale Roberts]

OSPG = worthless. I won't miss it.

 

Actually, it is hardly worthless to a dealer. You can turn directly to a page and get an idea of what a book is worth. Any book. To a dealer, it is still a very useful tool. If you are looking to value a collection, it would be never ending to try to find all the prices on line.

 

Imagine you had a computer in front of you and you're grading/pricing a bunch of books.

 

Then imagine saying "Avengers 133" and having that exact comic show up with all the Grades/Values from Overstreet and GPA. (And information on variants, cover scan, and notes on first appearances or notable events.

 

That's the future. (thumbs u

 

It'll save time and it'll be more relevant.

 

(One thing I hate doing when grading/pricing is thumbing through Overstreet to get to the right page.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now imagine you are in a con, under 2 billion tons of metal and steel and you have no internet signal. Someone comes to the table and wants to sell books.....you say, I can't buy them, I don't know what they are worth....

 

That is reality.

[G.A.tor]

print is dead, as many have reported... just doesn't make any sense any more, in today's instant info, instant gratification world, to still print weekly and monthly's...

now, an annual guide, with advertiser info, and reports, etc (like OSPG) that, I will continue to support and I suspect we will continue to see produced

Interesting, how come comics seem to be immune to this? I read more then ever thanks to the internet(blogs,newspapers,espn.com).Somehow comics have avoided this for now, For now as the Ipad lurks around the corner.

collectibility

[G.A.tor]

I would love to be hired by OS to run an online price guide