Zuda Comics (http://www.zudacomics.com/)
Apparently DC is tapping into the User Generated Content trend of the internet and is asking for submissions for a possibility of getting published. According to them creator owned deal where you would retain control but they haven't showed the offical contract yet. So is anyone going to attempt this?
The "indie" (lord, I'm beginning to hate that term) comics community has been pretty slow to embrace Zuda Comics (and in some cases, have been pretty disdainful of it), and for good reason. The main problems with the imprint are the following:
- Most successful (or at least competent) webcomics creators already have the resources to get their material out there on the internet. DC Comics hasn't really shown anything so far to convince them that they'll be able to do a better job doing so. In fact, DC's currently underwhelming web presence (relative to Marvel and smaller companies like Image and Dark Horse) doesn't really inspire a lot of confidence.
- The Zuda Comics imprint's strength as a marketing brand is questionable as well. It's not an established brand like DC or Vertigo (or even the more recent Minx line) so why would a creator want to tie up any future publishing plans in what's likely to be an exclusive agreement where the creator retains ownership of properties, but Zuda Comics holds exclusive web and paper publishing rights? If a creator already has a running webcomic, he/she might be better off sticking with it and trying to get published through more established small press publishers like Slave Labor Graphics or OniPress, or even a bigger publisher with a reputation for publishing neophyte creators like Image.
- The creators whom Zuda Comics will have the most appeal are likely to be those just starting out or don't have the resources to get their webcomics out (and there area lot of those out there). Understandably, the quality of the work they'll have to sort through will be a lot more variable. This will represent a sizable investment on DC's part, if they're really sincere in their efforts to choose potentially breakthrough hits. The thing, of course, is that you can't manufacture success on the internet, the websphere chooses what it likes and what it doesn't, and throwing money and corporate might at it doesn't really do a lot to change things.
If DC does offer something resembling a page-rate, all of these negative points become moot. Nothing like assured payment to inspire work and attract artists and writers.
Well, I consider myself in the know about webcomics and knew nothing about Zuda until I heard it mentioned in a videocast on Youtube. Anywho, the community at Drunk Duck seems to be centered on people who just want to get their work out there vs getting published (since if they get a publishing agreement, last time I checked, the site gets a cut). Warren Ellis was suppose to launch a similar webcomic community called RocketPirates but the thing is on hiatus until who knows when. The thing I dislike about webcomics is the lack of centralization and though there are communities like drunk duck, it still seems awfully scattered. So unless you are part of that clique of webcomic creators you are fighting an uphill battle. Anywho I have no clue about Zuda but here is hoping they do something worthwhile.
Zulu, most of those issues you raised echoed Joe Queseda's thoughts from a couple weeks ago, in a Joe Fridays, and i totally agree with all of them.
it's pretty much impossible to find any information on DC's comics through their own site, it doesn't really inspire confidence in me that they can partner up with an unheard of - and also web presence null - company and be successful.
A webcomiuc centralization thing would be great.
but one thing i'd like even more is if a publisher could team up with itunes or a service similar, where you could pay a small amount, and get high quality downloadable comics, and updates and podcasts for new series.
Quote from: Ajax on August 16, 2007, 10:13:40 PMThe thing I dislike about webcomics is the lack of centralization and though there are communities like drunk duck, it still seems awfully scattered. So unless you are part of that clique of webcomic creators you are fighting an uphill battle. Anywho I have no clue about Zuda but here is hoping they do something worthwhile.
I think most comic book fans would like a centralised hub for webcomics and legit downloadable comics. I'm just not sure if Zuda Comics is going to be that hub (because of the possible issues I outlined in my earlier post). That said, if it works, I'll be the first to applaud DC's efforts.
Quote from: detourne_me on August 16, 2007, 10:36:41 PM
Zulu, most of those issues you raised echoed Joe Queseda's thoughts from a couple weeks ago, in a Joe Fridays, and i totally agree with all of them.
it's pretty much impossible to find any information on DC's comics through their own site, it doesn't really inspire confidence in me that they can partner up with an unheard of - and also web presence null - company and be successful.
A webcomiuc centralization thing would be great.
Well, it's good to hear that I'm not the only one left scratching my head with the Zuda Comics announcement (although I expect Quesada to be more critical of anything DC does than most, both as a competitor and a comic book executive). I think DC's approaching this with a "build it and they will come" philosophy which is good if they want a low-cost, low-maintenance venture that they're gambling on to be a hit. I'm not sure if it's an effective approach if you're trying to raise your company's profile or if you want people to stand up and take notice of a new product. The fact that Ajax (whose word I'll take when he says he's immersed in all things webcomics) came across the announcement on YouTube several weeks after the actual news about Zuda broke speaks volumes. I can sort of understand why DC isn't exactly applying all their corporate might here... if it goes belly-up, at least they don't lose a lot of skin off their nose but it also seems like they're wasting everybody's time if that's the case.
Quote from: detourne_me on August 16, 2007, 10:36:41 PM
but one thing i'd like even more is if a publisher could team up with itunes or a service similar, where you could pay a small amount, and get high quality downloadable comics, and updates and podcasts for new series.
I've been waiting for legit downloadable comics from the Big Two myself. They're sitting on a huge pile of back issues that they probably won't ever reprint in TPB form due to printing costs and limited reading audience, so why not just offer reasonably high-quality scans for download? Offer them for free and just use advertising revenue (from site ads, or even embedded ads in the comics themselves) to cover the cost. At this point, those back-issues are just idle and taking up space in their inventories, they might as well use them as a marketing tool.
As a real-world example of a situation where this works, look at the NBA website. They've put up a video vault showing highlights of their classic games (http://www.nba.com/video/vault/home.html). It's all for free and they recognize that these things aren't competing with other NBA-branded products like their TV highlights shows or the full-game DVDs. What it does do is raise awareness and the profile of the NBA (which in turn leads to more ad revenue, merchandise sales, and ticket sales). In fact, last I heard, the NBA was developing a free searchable online index of their archived video (the ones that aren't in so much demand that they deserve their own DVDs), and not just the highlights. It's a great way to find a use for something that would otherwise have just been another idle asset.
I think the saving grace for Marvel/DC right now when it comes to the online market is the webcomic community is still young. Though you have some of the more popular series being published (PvP with Image, PennyArcade and Megatokyo with Dark Horse), you can tell they are still trying to figure out how to perfect/better how webcomics work. Especially if it's going to be a story driven webcomic a page ever other day doesn't really work. Another issue is the lack of "professionalism" where creators will take long breaks without updating their comic (random sketch book drawings don't count). Dresden Codak is a good example of a comic with long periods between updates and now that he is starting a story arc it might suffer from this.
So if DC does get involved or Warren Ellis does launch Rocket Pirates one of the things that would further the webcomic community as an industry would be having someone make sure they deliever content on a regular basis. Maybe even do it in issues, where every month you just update with 20 some odd pages, I don't know. Though I will say that the every other day format does work for the three panel comic strips.
Hooo boy. DC's really giving off the impression that it's dropping the ball with the whole Zuda Comics thing. Here's a blog post by lawyer/comic book blogger Jason Fliegel giving his two cents on the Zuda Comics panel during the recently concluded Wizard World Chicago.
The important bits:
Quote- DC didn't brief the panelists (Richard Brunning and Kwanza Johnson) on the legalities of the deal that is being offered to creators. Or DC hasn't figured it out themselves yet. Or both. During the panel, Brunning noted that DC would own the trademarks in the characters. I asked whether the trademarks would be registered with the Patent and Trademark Office, and if so, in what categories. Brunning and Johnson looked flabbergasted, then [deleted] me for thirty seconds before moving on to the next question. Clearly they had no idea.
- I asked whether, given the fact that DC's is a corporate affiliate of one of the biggest internet companies in the world (AOL), how did Zuda plan to leverage that relationship. Brunning's response was that DC very much wanted to retain control of Zuda, and so had made a decision not to involve AOL. Later, Brunning noted that Zuda would make use of Warner's movie, television, toy, etc. capabilities in licensing the comics, so the "We must keep this in the DC family!" explanation rings a little hollow. To me, this says corporate is not particularly committed to this.
- I asked what, if anything, Zuda planned to do to make itself known to that portion of the public that doesn't read Newsarama and attend Wizard World. Brunning and Johnson's response was to basically say "It's the internet. We don't need to advertise -- it's viral. Everyone's seen that dramatic hamster, right?"
... viral marketing doesn't just happen. It takes planning. Sure, every now and then something will catch on with the YouSpaceBook crowd and take off on its own (like the hamster that Johnson referenced, which is actually a prairie dog, but whatever). That's the exception, though, not the rule, and one ought not to count on lightning striking.
I can't say I'm suprised but I am saddened that this is going to fail.