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The Hobby.....say a 5 year timeline.

Started by Currin Comics,

104 posts in this topic

Cat-Man_America

Cat-Man_America

Posted
Posted
:preach: I don't mean to sound like the Lone Luddite here, but I'd assert that some type of static image medium is essential to inspire the imagination of the reader. Comics have always been a unique transitional medium between static illustrative art and the written novel; the mind fills in the gaps.

 

This to me sounds more like a matter of degree. People visualize everything when reading a novel, the only difference between static and motion imagery is how much of the imaginative process is being done for you.

 

Thank you! (thumbs u

 

You've actually made my argument in a roundabout way. If the imaginative process is done for you, then I'm of the opinion that the creative side of the mind isn't being engaged.

 

Reading a book requires that the reader envision what is described on the written page; that engages the mind. To a lesser degree comics perform a similar function by allowing the reader to imagine all of the action between frames.

 

See my point?

 

 

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silverweb

silverweb

Posted
Posted

I have DVD copies of ASM vol 1 and FF vol 1. Fortunately I also own raw copies of almost all ASM vol 1 and about half of the FF vol 1. I never am very interested in looking at the DVDs because they lack the tactile feel of the old comics.

 

However, the new comics are different. Looking at the Marvel digital samplers, they seem to transfer well to the digital PC screen.

 

So, I think the silver age books can never be replaced but it seems like the modern ones could be significantly impacted or supplanted by digital distribution. That would not be good for comic stores or the comic industry in general.

meh

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maloney414

maloney414

Posted
Posted
I wish I shared your outlook but I feel it is naively optimistic.

 

I'm not naive. It's a business, so the reality is that it's about making money for these companies. I'll try to make my points clearer in my responses below. (thumbs u

 

We are a LONG WAY from comics being completely digital. I don't know why people keep thinking it's about to happen. :makepoint:

 

I believe I said they would die out slowly, I'm not sure where you got "about to happen"

 

I wasn't targeting you. The title of the thread talks about 5 years from now. I'd say that's "about to happen."

 

Would these companies be able to attain the same profits digital? NO Absolutely, freakin NOT.

 

PIRACY is the key here. Going digital means reading it electronically is the only way to get it. PIRACY is already running wild on the internet with torrents for new comics already. Marvel and DC would lose huge amounts of money if they stopped printing books and small publishers would die immediately. If comics were already online it's no different to go to say Marvel.com than to go to Demoniod.com. Do a search for the book you're looking for and download it. It'll be $3.99 at Marvel.com and FREE at Demoniod.com. Sure, some people will go to Marvel.com, but the new generation knows what Bittorent is. (shrug)

 

Marvel/DC may not be the furture of the comics industry. The music industry has been hit hard by piracy, and the whole distribution paradigm is in flux. This does not mean that music will die out though, but the chain of creation to consumption is rapidly evolving. There is much the comic industry could learn from the mistakes made by the music industry. Hopefully they are paying attention.

 

Yes, the music business has changed. Music is now FREE. Websites are now marketing themselves as a SERVICE not a product. Download here because it's safer, or because we can synch with your itunes account already, etc... Music itself is FREE, you are paying for a service. This isn't a good business model for comics, since they are already struggling for readers. The music industry isn't struggling for new listeners.

 

Plus, new independent publishers would never be able to start up.

 

You couldn't be more wrong here. Startup costs for digital production and distribution are absolutely minimal compared to print production/distribution.

 

Start up costs can be a cheap as can be, but if you aren't selling anything you'll go out of business.

 

At least with a comic shop people can see these titles next to the Marvel/DC stuff and give it a try. I doubt they'd get much exposure if Marvel/DC went digital.

 

And again, PIRACY would kill them. Go Google DCP or MINUTEMEN right now and see how many torrents come up. You can actually download and read ANY new comic that comes out. You just have to be willing to wait about a week for it to be uploaded. And if it's a popular title, it'll be there by Wednesday night.

 

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JazzMan

JazzMan

Posted
Posted

In 5 years there will be a rise in uptake of digital comics on tablet based devices. It will not replace print versions yet, but that will not be too far from happening.

 

I suspect that within my lifetime I will see the demise of paper based comics and that this media will go all electronic. There may be some late changers, but I guarantee you that within the next 10 years there will be popular titles that will be available only as an online subscription.

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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
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Digital distribution online to tablets (such as iPad) or other screen-based media. Print is a dying medium, appreciated by those who grew up with it but future generations are unlikely to have the same connection to it that we do. Environmental/resource concerns will also factor in, although paper is not the scarce commodity some believe it to be.

 

That being said, comics are static images because that is currently a limit of the paper medium. I've been in the motion graphics industry for 20 years and the rapid acceleration and distribution of the tools necessary for motion is getting faster and faster, as well as more sophisticated. Comics will either adapt or die out slowly.

 

Interesting viewpoint and a sad one should it come to pass.

 

:preach: I don't mean to sound like the Lone Luddite here, but I'd assert that some type of static image medium is essential to inspire the imagination of the reader. Comics have always been a unique transitional medium between static illustrative art and the written novel; the mind fills in the gaps. Motion graphics is an innovative technology, but it is a poor substitute for imagination.

 

Here's why:

 

Turning the illustrated page into a moving graphic image is like trying to replace a book with a TV show. The mental exercise of imagination is lost by adding motion graphics to static images. IOW, motion would only serve to "dumb-down" comics; that isn't progress (in my book). Don't get me wrong, Ipads, Kindles, e-readers and their future offspring are superb tools. Furthermore, I'm an avid supporter of ALL digital technology, but that said, interactivity has it's own inherent limitations when it fails to engage the mind.

 

Finally, no digital medium can replace hard-copies for collectors any more than a digital copy of a signature can replace an autograph, ...and I believe that collecting is hard-wired into our DNA. In short, motion graphics are an undeniably "kewl" idea, ...on paper, ...but what is left when that paper disappears? hm

 

There will always be a following of paper just like there is a following for vinyl.

 

You just can't substitute the real thing with a digital replacement.

 

That's already been proven.

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joe_collector

joe_collector

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

 

Vinyl records have been "obsolete" for decades and they are still around. In fact they are growing in popularity with manufacturers coming out with better and better turn tables all the time.

 

 

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Scrooge

Scrooge

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

I don't see much of a push to go digital in Europe for comics. I'll take Conditionfreak's side of the bet on this one JC. Maybe, they will no longer be monthlies going through a comic book store but there will still be printed funny books in forty years. In fact, I'll put away a good bottle to drink up to my winning this bet and I'll open it and savor it in 2051 :acclaim:

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joe_collector

joe_collector

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

 

Vinyl records have been "obsolete" for decades and they are still around. In fact they are growing in popularity with manufacturers coming out with better and better turn tables all the time.

 

doh!doh!

 

Give me a break. CDs are seen as a "dying medium", yet they still sell hundreds of millions of copies, and the last time I looked, vinyl only sells 1-2 million copies a year.

 

That's not even a microbe on the hair on the boil of an amoeba's butt.

 

If that's the model for comic sales going forward, then :roflmao:

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conditionfreak

conditionfreak

Posted
Posted

Just visit a "Borders" book store and see the light. I went to one for some Christmas presents and they had six cashiers and six long lines.

 

Two weeks before Christmas!

 

Now granted. The Christmas season is like no other season of buying, but everyone had paper books in their hands. The store was filled with new stuff. Even with the "Kendels" and "Ipads" (or whatever those things are), on TV all day long.

 

Here are some questions. How many collect old computers? How many collect old tape recorders, or VHS players? How many collect 8 track players? You can buy a Bruce Lee "Enter the Dragon" DVD on these very boards for 3 bucks or so (I have), but I can not buy his book for 3 bucks and will never be able to, unless I get extremely lucky at a yard sale.

 

There will always be a lot of "us" collecting old comic books. Even if the new ones go digital.

 

Ever go to an internet site that allows someone to "publish" their own book for 40 bucks or so? I have. It is very popular.

 

Besides. How would we do signature series? A DVD or Ipad in a slab? Horrors!

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conditionfreak

conditionfreak

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

Well, I guess I conceed to you then. Because we all know that you are never wrong.

 

Sorry I spoke up.

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bronze_rules

bronze_rules

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

 

Vinyl records have been "obsolete" for decades and they are still around. In fact they are growing in popularity with manufacturers coming out with better and better turn tables all the time.

 

 

While they might not be completely extinct, I would pretty much proclaim them dead as collectibles for all intents and purposes.

 

30cvlau.jpg

 

I'd say that's a pretty good measure of a "thing of the past." And that took what, 10 years from the peak? I wonder what vinyl aficionados were saying back then to the naysayers. :whistle:

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joe_collector

joe_collector

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

Well, I guess I conceed to you then. Because we all know that you are never wrong.

 

I don't think even the most naive Pollyanna on here would side with your "paper comic will be alive and vibrant in 40+ years" stand. It's just demographic and societal reality.

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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

 

Vinyl records have been "obsolete" for decades and they are still around. In fact they are growing in popularity with manufacturers coming out with better and better turn tables all the time.

 

 

30cvlau.jpg

For purposes of this discussion, I'd say that's a pretty good measure of a "thing of the past."

 

I had no idea how they sell over all, I just know that here in town we have several vinyl record stores that do reasonably well and we are just a small town.

 

I do see a slight surge from 2005 onwards. :baiting:

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conditionfreak

conditionfreak

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

Well, I guess I conceed to you then. Because we all know that you are never wrong.

 

I don't think even the most naive Pollyanna on here would side with your "paper comic will be alive and vibrant in 40+ years" stand. It's just demographic and societal reality.

 

Well, Scrooge already did. If you take out the words you added to my statement, such as "vibrant".

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mackenzie999

mackenzie999

Posted
Posted

ok, quoting this would be a mess, so I'll just take a few stabs here and there. The reason I assumed this was directed at me is because it was a reply to my post.

 

Bitorrent is an unfortunate reality, but piracy has always been a problem in the digital age. Before torrents went mainstream Adobe estimated that 10% of the copies of Photoshop out there were licensed, which is why that software is priced as highly as it is. Adobe remains successful, so their strategy of essentially making their good customers pay for their bad customers works for them (granted, PS is by far the industry leader so they have some leverage here). I'm not saying comics just charge $20/copy to make up for lost revenue, I'm saying that those who cannot imagine any remedy for piracy are simply unimaginative. I lump myself in with this group, I don't know how they might solve this but I do not assume it is unsolvable.

 

You're right, the music industry is not a good business model for comics, which is why I hope the comics industry is paying attention to them and learning.

 

While it's true that startups need marketing in order to feed success, the threshold of success is significantly lower when your production and distribution costs are digital vs physical. Smaller ad budgets mean smaller voices in the marketplace, but the really good material will thrive in part due to word of mouth via social media. Darwinism will simply weed out the weak material, and that's fine with me.

 

Print is dying. It may happen sooner, maybe not for a while, and it will probably never cease to exist completely, but it will become marginalized to the point of near-nonexistence. To deny this is to deny the inevitable future. I do not argue because I want this, I LOVE physical comics and wish them to thrive, but if they do not adapt to the future they will eventually go away.

 

That's about all I have time to say on this matter.

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joe_collector

joe_collector

Posted
Posted
Just visit a "Borders" book store and see the light. I went to one for some Christmas presents and they had six cashiers and six long lines.

 

Two weeks before Christmas!

 

Obviously you grew up on another planet, otherwise you would note that the number of bookstores has dramatically decreased (we used to have 5-6 in our neighborhood alone) and although sales have dropped precipitously, they are now concentrated in a few large chains.

 

So when you walk into Chapters and see a crowd of people, it gives the illusion that the marketplace is doing great, but it ignores the fact that you are looking at the entire book-reading populace of a very large area.

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mackenzie999

mackenzie999

Posted
Posted
Comic books may someday become a thing of the past. But not for the forseeable future. Certainly not in the next forty years.

 

You think paper funny books are going to last another 40 years... at least?

 

Sorry, but that is just crazy.

 

 

Vinyl records have been "obsolete" for decades and they are still around. In fact they are growing in popularity with manufacturers coming out with better and better turn tables all the time.

 

doh!doh!

 

Give me a break. CDs are seen as a "dying medium", yet they still sell hundreds of millions of copies, and the last time I looked, vinyl only sells 1-2 million copies a year.

 

That's not even a microbe on the hair on the boil of an amoeba's butt.

 

If that's the model for comic sales going forward, then :roflmao:

 

I don't often agree with JC but he's right about this.

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