Diamond Digital Designs Detailed

**Iangould** · 02-09-2011, 04:33 PM

Diamond has released details of its digital distribution plans.

Plans call for day-and-date digital editions to sell exclusively at comic shops for 30 days for about $1.99, with “Digital Plus” editions – digital copies available with the purchase of a hard copy – expected to sell for $.99.

Thanks to a simple but technologically robust code redemption system, retailers will need only an internet connection and a printer to participate. They will have no inventory risk or carrying costs and will retain a significant portion of each sale, with billing occurring on their regular DCD invoices. Retailers with websites will also be able to profitably sell a wide range of digital back issue comics and graphic novels.

Publishers already on-board with the program include: Ape Entertainment, Archie Comics, Aspen Comics, Bluewater Productions, Broadsword Comics, Hermes Press, IDW Publishing, Moonstone Comics, NBM Publishing, Papercutz, Red 5 Comics, Studio Foglio, Titan Books, TOKYOPOP, Top Cow Productions and Top Shelf Productions. Talks with other publishers are continuing, and the first comic shop digital editions are slated to debut in July, 2011.

The big drawback is obviously Marvel, Dc and Dark horse aren't on board yet.

**Charles RB** · 02-09-2011, 04:41 PM

I can't see them jumping on here. It's going to make more sense for them to run their own digital distribution.

**Iangould** · 02-09-2011, 04:52 PM

That depends - the key to digital sales is to get on an as many platforms as possible to maximise revenue.

Unless the profit margins through Diamond are dramatically lower or their existing deals with other companies like Comixology restrict them from entering into deals with third parties, it probably makes sense fro them to get on the Diamond Digital platform.

**Iangould** · 02-09-2011, 04:55 PM

Rich Johnston has more.

**dupont2005** · 02-09-2011, 05:15 PM

To me the biggest drawback seems to be that you have to go to a comic shop to buy it. Why not sell them online?

**Iangould** · 02-09-2011, 05:30 PM

The comics will also be available via retailers' websites.

**Expletive Deleted** · 02-09-2011, 06:42 PM

Originally Posted by Iangould

Unless the profit margins through Diamond are dramatically lower or their existing deals with other companies like Comixology restrict them from entering into deals with third parties, it probably makes sense fro them to get on the Diamond Digital platform.

Apple's recent noises about in-app purchasing options might pose a problem, too.

**Paul McEnery** · 02-09-2011, 06:59 PM

This is dumb as fuck, and massively insulting to everyone involved. Not least the hard+digital idea -- why on earth would I want to pay an extra dollar to buy the same thing again?

The bottom line is that this clearly drives the torrent market -- especially for people nowhere near a comic shop, which obviously defeats the entire purpose.

And I can't see why Marvel or DC would have anything to gain from hobbling themselves this way -- let alone while forking over a chunk of change to Diamond that they don't have to.

It's been perfectly obvious that the Big Two have been positioning themselves for the post LCS market for a long time now. And in any case: their model is already in place, and being used.

**Sabrina_Fried** · 02-09-2011, 07:58 PM

On the one hand, I like that some of the smaller publishers are giving digital a try. And day-and-date on digital. Also good. Too bad there are no details yet on the file formats. Are we talking something proprietary? Or will it be something DRM-free?

I read Rich Johnston's post to get some of the details, and it doesn't really sound like it is going to work so well in execution.

- First off, the digital comics are only available for 30-days after publication. There is no digital "back issue bin" So the only way potential new readers could jump on a comic series is to go to a comic shop and buy the paper copy and/or wait for a print TPB collection.

- Second, people who have bought a paper copy can get a digital copy for 99 cents more. But if I have already bought a paper copy of a new release comic...why do I need a second digital copy? Why not just buy the digital comic and forget about print?

- What if someone has no comic shop near them. Can they just go to any old comic shop's website and buy the digital comics there? Seems like a horrible duplication of services to me. I can understand that Diamond doesn't want to alienate the comic shop owners, but their overhead would be much lower if there was one centralazed online shop for the digital comics. Do we really need ANOTHER factor to drive the price of comics even higher?

**Iangould** · 02-09-2011, 08:14 PM

Originally Posted by Sabrina_Fried

- First off, the digital comics are only available for 30-days after publication. There is no digital "back issue bin" So the only way potential new readers could jump on a comic series is to go to a comic shop and buy the paper copy and/or wait for a print TPB collection.

No, the exclusivity deal only applies for the first 30 days. Thereafter the publishers can sell their digital books elsewhere as well. Diamodd even mentions digital back issue sales as one of the potential benefits.

What if someone has no comic shop near them. Can they just go to any old comic shop's website and buy the digital comics there? Seems like a horrible duplication of services to me. I can understand that Diamond doesn't want to alienate the comic shop owners, but their overhead would be much lower if there was one centralazed online shop for the digital comics. Do we really need ANOTHER factor to drive the price of comics even higher?

Many if not most comic shops already have a website. This will be a relatively simple add-on which will effectively consist of a centralized app-store with a different skin for each retailer.

**dupont2005** · 02-09-2011, 08:31 PM

Originally Posted by Iangould

The comics will also be available via retailers' websites.

I still don't get it. Why the retailers websites? Why unnecessarily add overhead costs and merchant markups to digital content? Having multiple small publishers available in one spot is a good idea, but it's the only good idea I see here. Price isn't bad either, but I wonder how much lower it could be if it were sold right on the Diamond website instead?

**Iangould** · 02-09-2011, 08:51 PM

It adds no more complexity or expense than any of the affiliate programs run by large on-line retailers like Amazon.

**dupont2005** · 02-09-2011, 08:55 PM

Originally Posted by Iangould

It adds no more complexity or expense than any of the affiliate programs run by large on-line retailers like Amazon.

One more middleman. Amazon would be the only middleman between me and the publisher of the content. Here it Is Diamond and then the LCS. For small publishers it makes sense to sell on an online distributor site for exposure, legitimacy, and ease of shopping for buyers. I don't see any reason for a larger publisher to get on board though, and the fact that Marvel and DC aren't on board is a bad sign considering they pretty much keep Diamond running.

**Kees_L** · 02-10-2011, 08:27 AM

Originally Posted by Sabrina_Fried

On the one hand, I like that some of the smaller publishers are giving digital a try.

> snipped for space <

Do we really need ANOTHER factor to drive the price of comics even higher?

But why are people saying that digital would have to make comics be cheaper than print necessarily?

Digital comics will still remain to be a commercial product won't it?
And it will still mean that comics need to get made first and put to exist as some kind of digital format which still needs buying both as distribution (digitally) andsoforth. Not?

Like I-Tunes ("legal downloading instead of illegal" which costs) or 'computer-console downloadable content' (break the console and the product you bought vanishes).
Digital comics won't be magical. They cannot be freely share-able or they would just get pirated. Right?

And the Amazon VS LCS discussion is different because it's about online shops versus "real shops" - being different than printed comics VS digital comics. Not?

I use I-Tunes. But I still buy CD's too. Vinyl records even. Plus I like attending concerts (when they're crowded and loud I sometimes yell obscenities, like "poo" or "pee", just for kicks).

I'm thinking I won't ever switch to digital reading all of a sudden. As I'm thinking such won't ever be cheaper or easier or anything. As I wouldn't want my computer to get more vital both as virus-susceptible. I know I could buy an external harddrive for backing shit up, but. I like bookcases better.

And buying in bulk more cheaply one could do for print or either digital, but such will hinge on it being bulk: you'd have to seriously invest by the shipload for such to work!