Comixology CEO David Steinberger released a video on the company’s Vimeo site debuting their beta app for desktop computers and talking a little bit about the plan for the full release. The interesting thing is that Comixology is letting anyone with a Comixology account or anyone who wants to register an account use the beta. That is right, if you click the link above, you can go check out all the free comics on your desktop right now!
Steinberger was definitely open with all of the details and plans that Comixology has for this app. The good points are a bigger screen to read all the comics on, you can switch between two page and the special panel by panel view and even enter a full screen mode, as well as whatever you buy on one platform (iPad, iPhone, or Desktop) you will own on every platform. So if you are reading on the go and get home and want to switch to a bigger screen you can just go over to your desktop and continue reading.
The next big question is of course, is this just another neat trick or will this actually influence more people to switch to a digital format on a larger scale? My answer is still no and I think a lot of people will agree in the long run. It is all about the models for the release schedule and pricing. At this point the Comics app still isn’t up to date on any of the series it has gotten and who knows if they will ever be able to. When it only costs me a dollar more to get my comic on time instead of waiting months to read it I will probably always choose the print version.
Now if it was possible to catch up to something that I have not been reading for a dollar an issue than I very easily could see myself utilizing their services. This where I can see a market of customers that I hope Comixology is going to try to market to. If they can grab the not so avid readers who are not reading comics or only reading casually and show them an easier way to read all their comics in one place without having to leave their house, I think they can really capitalize on this type of reader.
Now the final judgment of this product should definitely be reserved until we can all get a good look at the new storefront for the desktop app with its full release. I really hope that this is a large step to getting more publishers to give more rights to their books because I can definitely see myself switching for the right price and for timely releases. What I would really like to know is what would it take to get the avid comic book reader to switch their books to this format? So make sure you go check out the new app!
I think this is notable because you really need a desktop app as sort of a “home base” in which to do business in digital comic book publishing.
That being said, I don’t really care about reading comics on a computer screen unless it can be done online (like Marvel has done with their monthly subscription.) Why? Because it mostly sucks… it’s clunky despite even the best of user interfaces. The text is often times too tiny to read and zooming in seems unnatural. It’s not as if I can pick up the monitor and comfortably move it closer to my face the same way I can with paper.
The problem with digital comics in the last decade has been that the computer screen will just never translate well enough for people to really leave their ol’ reliable, “Dead-tree-glossy-stock-two-stapled” version. And so, Steve Jobs did the world a solid and created something that would very much bridge that gap (which of course is the iPad / Tablet computing).
The fact that Steinberger understood this makes me think Comixology’s desktop app will fill the gaps that cannot be satisfied by tablets or smart phones.
It’s an exciting time to be into comics for technophiles.
(P.S. Good article!)
Comment by Tom Cheredar — June 8, 2010 @ 2:46 pm
I agree, this will never replace true comic buying. But it is great for those of us trying to get caught up on titles I don’t read often. I purchased an Android based tablet specifically for reading comics and books. I like the Marvel subscription service and hope to see the same from other companies…unless of course, this Comixology program can bring them all to one spot (unlikely) which would be awesome. I loved the article, this site keeps me up to date and I appreciate it!
Comment by Gary Makries — June 9, 2010 @ 11:31 am