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thatcaptainguyAll the credit for this goes to the anime blog, just spreading the word:
http://www.theanimeblog.com (Check them out!)
The day before New York Comic-Con opened, ICv2 (the pop culture retail news source) held their 2010 Comics and Digital Conference at the Jacob Javits Center. ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp presented his annual white paper preview looking at the comics and graphic novel business so far this year, which also includes digital sales. The main points he made about manga in the US and Canadian market were:
- sales declined by 9% in the first half of 2010 compared to the same period in 2009
- assuming this trend continues, there will probably be a 20% drop in 2010
- this would mean manga sales will have dropped 50% over a three year period
- there has been a dramatic decrease of TV exposure (via anime) for manga properties, and what anime had been shown had no big hits like Fruits Basket or Naruto
- the manga industry has been slow to develop a digital strategy, though there has been a crackdown on pirated material (i.e., scanlations)
- there are currently few legal alternatives for digital versions of manga
Speaking of digital, Mr. Griepp said that digital comics are “the fastest-growing part of the comics business”. He said that the market has expanded from $500,000 in 2009 to an estimated $6 million to $8 million in 2010. That is an increase of over ten times.
The Beat blog has posted the audio of the white paper preview presentation.
Source: Comics Alliance – ICv2 Projects Graphic Novel Sales Down 20%, Digital Comics Up Over 1000% in 2010
Viz Media has started a new program with digital media. In early November, they released a free iPad app that will allow their customers to purchase and download Viz titles. The app is called the Viz Media App and is available as a download from the iTunes Store. For a limited time, the first volume of Death Note is available for free. Five other series are being offered…Bleach, Dragon Ball, Naruto, One Piece, and Bakuman. The initial price is $4.99 per volume. Future titles will include D. Gray Man, Rurouni Kenshin, and Vampire Knight.
Viz Media’s Senior VP and General Manger Alvin Lu said in the App Press Release:
“Fans have been clamoring for an official manga-dedicated app from the moment they heard of the iPad’s existence. It’s easy to see how manga and the iPad make for a perfect and natural fit. The VIZ MANGA APP is a great start, and this is just the beginning of manga’s brave new world. Look for plenty more developments to come.”
In a Publishers Weekly article, Mr. Lu addressed the question of the possibility app support for the iPhone, iPod, and Android as well as publishing original manga through the app by simply saying that there’s “more to come”.
Sources: Press Release – Viz Media Launches Free Viz Manga iPad App, Publishers Weekly – Viz Media Releases Free Viz Manga App for the iPad, Viz App Webpage
Another digital manga project involving the iPad is called Maniac Tours. It is an original manga created for the iPad by Katalyst Lab. The synopsis (from the iTunes Preview Page):
“Maniac Tours is set in the year 2045, by the beaches of Shonan Enoshima. “Scrap Surfers” challenge the waves of a junk-filled ocean. The expensive antiques that float amongst other items of junk in the sea and a mysterious technology named “Nagisa Engine”, together, bring forth a transient summer in a near future surfer city. Will the legendary big wave ever come again to the scrap infested ocean?”
There are 10 episodes planned. The first episode is free. Subsequent episodes are $.99 each. All episodes are in Japanese, English, and French.
Maniac Tours Logo & Image © Ryosuke Oda, Katalyst Lab Inc.
ANN Sources: Maniac Tours Manga’s 1st Chapter Posted for Free on iPad, iPad Manga Comic Maniac Tours Now On Sale (Press Release), Maniac Tours website
A group of Japanese publishers have come up with their own digital distribution plans for North America. 37 publishers, including ASCII Media Works, Kadokawa Shoten, Kodansha, and Shogakukan, are planning to collaborate on a joint portal site. It is tentatively called the J Manga Portal Site and will act as the distribution point of manga from the 37 publishers. According to the Japanese industry news site animeanime.biz, the portal site will also distribute some free manga as well.
The publishers are planning to have a beta version of the portal up and running by year’s end and have the final version of the site operational by March.
ANN Source: 37 Japanese Publishers to Launch N. American Manga Portal (Update 3)
In late October, another distribution effort was launched which involves a smaller group of publishers, but which is also trying to include the participation by fans. This is the Digital Manga Guild. The driving force behind the Guild is Digital Manga Publishing (DMP) CEO Hikaru Sasahara. He wants to change (or, as he puts it, to break) the current licensing system which restricts the number of titles which distributers are able to release. From his introductory remarks at the 2010 Yaoi-Con:
“Due to the current licensing system, we can only release 8-12 titles a month. That’s because we have to pay a minimum guarantee up front for every title we license, which can be several thousand dollars per title. As you can see, this means that cash flow is a really big problem, because (the Japanese publishers/licensors) ask for this money up front before we even publish the books. On top of that, we have to pay the translator, the editor, and the letterer after they complete their work, so all this money is tied up before we can even sell a single book. This is a system that I want to break.“
The model which the Guild will use has the fans (localizers) acting as translators, editors, and letterers. The source material will be supplied by the publishers. There are currently six publishers that have verbally agreed to this project. The managing company will be DMP. They will coordinate the efforts of the localizers and publishers and act as quality control. Everyone will get paid via a revenue share process once the books are read online or sold as print editions.
In an interview with about.com: manga‘s Deb Aoki at Yaoi-Con, Sasahara-san was asked about the identity of the six publishers:
“I can’t say right now, but I can tell you that they mostly publish boys love manga, along with some mainstream type manga as well. They are all small to medium sized companies. One is a very well-known company in the yaoi manga industry.
It’s all win-win for everyone involved: for the content providers, the localizers and us, the managing company. Digital Manga will be acting as the online distributor, and the managing entity for this concept. What we need now are localizers, who can do the translation and the lettering and editing, and the publishers who will let us work with their content. We can also deal directly with the (comics) creators themselves, if they want to release their work through us too, such as their doujinshi or other works.“
As implied above, the manga which the Guild will be working with is primarily BL. However, their website’s FAQ states that “eventually we will add more mainstream genres like shoujo and shounen“.
For fans interested in joining the Guild as a localizer, they can register at the website and take the test for translators, editors, and/or letterers.
Image of Localization Procedure © 2010 Digital Manga, Inc.
Sources: AnimeNation – Digital Manga Guild Announced, About.com: Manga – Interview: Hikaru Sasahara of Digital Manga Publishing, Digital Manga Guild website
Now here are the Manga Releases for December 2010:
December 1, 2010
Dark Horse
- Star Wars: The Old Republic #6—Blood of the Empire part 3
June
- The Spiral of Sand
December 7, 2010
Viz Media
- Bleach, Vol. 33
- Butterflies, Flowers, Vol. 5
- Cactus’s Secret, Vol. 4
- Honey Hunt, Vol. 6
- Hoshin Engi, Vol. 21
- JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Vol. 16
- Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 1
- Library Wars: Love & War, Vol. 3
- Ouran High School Host Club, Vol. 15
- Pokémon Adventures, Vol. 10
- Rasetsu, Vol. 7
- Rosario+Vampire: Season II, Vol. 3
- Seiho Boys’ High School!, Vol. 3
- Skip Beat!, Vol. 22
- Slam Dunk, Vol. 13
- Toriko, Vol. 3
- Ultimo, Vol. 3
- Vampire Knight, Vol. 11
December 14, 2010
Viz Media
- Arata: The Legend, Vol. 4
- Detroit Metal City, Vol. 7
- Inuyasha, Vol. 55
- Itsuwaribito , Vol. 1
December 15, 2010
Doki Doki
- A Place in the Sun
June
- Intriguing Secrets
- Open The Door To Your Heart
- Temperature Rising
- The Tyrant Falls In Love Vol.2
December 20, 2010
June
- Cold Fever
December 21, 2010
Viz Media
- Children of the Sea , Vol. 4
- Gente, Vol. 2
- House of Five Leaves, Vol. 2
- I’ll Give It My All…Tomorrow, Vol. 2
- Naoki Urasawa’s 20th Century Boys, Vol. 12
- Ôoku: The Inner Chambers, Vol. 5
December 22, 2010
Dark Horse
- Oh My Goddess! Volume 16 tpb
December 28, 2010
Viz Media
- Death Note Black Edition, Vol. 1
Releasing throughout the month of December, 2010
801 Media
- No releases this month
Aurora Publishing, Inc.
- No releases this month
Bandai Entertainment/Manga
- Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion Graphic Novel 8
- Code Geass: Queen Graphic Novel 3
- Eureka Seven Novel 4: Here to Stay
- Gundam 00F Graphic Novel 4
Blu
- No releases this month
Candlewick Press
- No releases this month
DC Comics
- No releases this month
Del Rey
- No releases this month
Digital Manga Publishing
- Vampire Hunter D Graphic Novel 5
DrMaster
- No releases this month
Fantagraphics
- No releases this month
Kodansha International
- No releases this month
Last Gasp Books
- No releases this month
Net Comics
- There’s Something About Sunyool. Vol. 2
One Peace Books
- No releases this month
Seven Seas Entertainment
- Dance in the Vampire Bund Vol. 9
TokyoPop
- Aria Graphic Novel 6
- Cabin in the Woods: Land of the Rising Terror
- Chibi Vampire: Bites Official Fan Book
- Foxy Lady Graphic Novel 3
- Fruits Basket Ultimate Edition Graphic Novel 6
- Future Diary Graphic Novel 9
- Guardian Hearts Graphic Novel 3
- Hanako and The Terror of Allegory Graphic Novel 3
- Happy Cafe Graphic Novel 6
- Hekikai no AiON Graphic Novel 1
- Hetalia Axis Powers Graphic Novel 2
- Karakuri Odette Graphic Novel 5
- Momogumi Plus Senki Graphic Novel 4
- Neko Ramen Graphic Novel 3: A Cat After All!
- NG Life Graphic Novel 8
- Ratman Graphic Novel 3
- Secret Notes of Lady Kanoko, The Graphic Novel 1
- Silver Diamond Graphic Novel 8: After Death
- V.B. Rose Graphic Novel 11
Udon Entertainment
- Mega Man Battle Network: Official Complete Works
- Mega Man Star Force: Official Complete Works Artbook
- Megaman Megamix Graphic Novel 3
- Silent Mobius: Complete Edition Graphic Novel 4
- Street Fighter Gaiden Graphic Novel 1
- Street Fighter II: The Ultimate Edition Graphic Novel
- Street Fighter Legends Graphic Novel 3: Ibuki
- Street Fighter: The Ultimate Edition Graphic Novel
Vertical
- Black Jack Graphic Novel 13
- Chi’s Sweet Home Graphic Novel 4
- City of Refuge
- Peepo Choo Graphic Novel 3
- Twin Spica, Vol.3
Watson-Guptill
- No releases this month
Yen Press
- Not Love But Delicious Foods Make Me So Happy
- Spice and Wolf, Vol. 3
- Yotsuba&!, Volume 9
- GA: Geijutsuka Art Design Class, Volume 3
- Higurashi WHEN THEY CRY Beyond Midnight Arc, Volume 2
- Angel Diary, Volume 13
- Jack Frost, Vol. 4
- Bamboo Blade, Volume 7
- Goong, Volume 10
- Tena on S-String, Volume 5
- Sundome, Volume 8
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Anime Conventions:
December 3, 2010
Christmas Cosplay – Topeka, Indiana (USA)
December 3 – 6, 2010
Floatacon
(Note: This would have been an Anime Con Cruise)
December 4, 2010
Cosplay Workshop with Emily Bastian – Southend-on-Sea, England (UK)
(Note: The workshop will cover basic sewing skills, prop making, advice on wig styling and special effects make-up, how to wear traditional Japanese clothing – kimono and hakama, hands-on tutorial making realistic cat ears and other cosplay accessories)
December 4 – 6, 2010
Sangawa Project – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA)
(Note: This con is for the older otaku…18+. Their mission statement: “To provide Adult Otaku a relaxed, social, open, and tolerant place to discuss their fandom(s) relating to Anime, Japanese Culture, and associated topics.”)
December 11, 2010
The Paper Washi Wish – London, England (UK)
(This is a theater production for young children with a hands-on paper making workshop)
December 12, 2010
Las Vegas Super Con – Henderson, Nevada (USA)
(Note: Bring a canned food donation and recieve a discount on the entrance fee)
Toronto AnimeCon –Toronto, Ontario (Cananda)
December 17 – 19, 2010
Bishie Con – St. Louis, Missouri (USA)
Wanekon – Warsaw, Poland (Site language is Polish)
December 18, 2010
Colossalcon 9.5 – Macedonia, Ohio (USA)
December 31, 2010
Bristol Cosplay Clubnight New Year’s Eve 2010 – Bristol, England (UK)
December 31, 2010 – January 2, 2011
Ikkicon 2011 – Austin, Texas (USA)
MEWcon – Portland, Oregon (USA)
(This is a multi-genre con: Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Anime and Manga)
January 7 – 9, 2011
Animé Los Angeles – Los Angeles, California (USA)
Ichibancon – Charlotte, North Carolina (USA)
Sac-Anime – Sacramento, California (USA)
Taiyou Con – Mesa, Arizona (USA)
January 8, 2011
Epikon – San Antonio, Texas (USA) Cancelled
(This event has been cancelled. Epikon 2012 is currently being organized.)
January 14 – 15, 2011
KotoriCon – Sewell, New Jersey (USA)
January 14 – 17, 2011
Arisia – Boston, Massachusetts (USA)
(Primarily a Science Fiction Con)
January 15, 2011
Ai-Kon Winter Festival – Winnipeg, Manitoba (Canada)
Chibi-Pa Sampler II – West Palm Beach, Florida (USA)
January 15 – 16, 2011
Anime-Zap! – Peoria, Illinois (USA)
SoDak Anime Convention – Rapid City, South Dakota (USA)
January 22 – 23, 2011
Las Cruces Anime Days – Las Cruces, New Mexico (USA)
January 28 – 30, 2011
Ohayocon – Columbus, Ohio (USA)
January 29 – 30, 2011
Setsucon – State College, Pennsylvania (USA)
Wai-Con – Perth, Western Australia (Australia)
