Well, that sure worked out nicely.
No sooner do I post a follow-up piece about my recent experiences with digital comics, in which I mentioned that Marvel's digital comics bought on their iPad app don't sync with ComiXology's app and digital library, then ComiXology announces today that Hey, Kids...They can now sync with one another! According to Mr. Press Release from ComiXology, "comiXology announced today that they will now be selling over 3,500 of Marvel digital comics through their Web Viewer at comics.comixology.com as they continue to expand their digital presence. Comic fans can now enjoy one of the largest Marvel digital comics’ libraries online whenever they want."
And sure enough, when I check out the ComiXology digital comics store on their website, it now features Marvel Comics offerings, including their own publisher section where you can easily browse for offerings by title. Even better, both the purchased and free comics I obtained on Marvel's iPad app already show up as part of my ComiXology digital library. Just like DC Comics, just like Dynamite Entertainment and just like Image Comics.
In the immortal words of John McClane from the cinema classic Die Hard...Welcome to the party, pal!
However, the ability to read Marvel's digital comics using an Android app, such as ComiXology's app for Android smartphones, still seems to be missing. This definitely needs to be corrected/resolved, but at least there's a step in the right direction.
And sadly, Dark Horse Comics and IDW Publishing still haven't gotten with the program as of this writing, but I did get some feedback from Topher at Dark Horse Digital concerning my previous piece, clarifying that they do offer weekly discounts on selected titles for only $0.99 on their company app, along with other updates and free promotions. While I have no idea if my previous piece had any affect on Marvel's move, it was good to see Dark Horse stepping up and taking an active interest in what others think of their digital efforts.
I remain hopeful, though, that Dark Horse and IDW will wake up and smell the (DAMN good) coffee and team with ComiXology the way Marvel has for the benefit of their consumers. The more user-friendly and accessible digital comics are, the more likely that comic book readers will be inclined to use them. You can still have all your company's neato-cool bells and whistles on your own neato-cool app, but let consumers have the ability to have all of their digital comics in a central location, or the ability to read all those comics on their smartphone if they choose.
To be continued...Hopefully.
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