Scribd Launching Unlimited Digital Comics Subscription

What do you do if you’re already the “Netflix/Spotify for books”? Well, add over 10,000 comics and graphic novels from top publishers to your $8.99/month service.

Today, Scribd announced this addition of digital comics from publishers Marvel, Valiant, IDW, Top Shelf, Archie, Boom! Studios, Top Cow, Arcana, Zenescope, Space Goat, and Kingstone. This is in addition to over a million eBooks and audiobooks from hundreds of publishers that they currently offer.

This is great, and potentially game-changing, for fans of digital comics. It begs a few questions, however. Like, first, where the hell is DC? Their omission from launch seems like DC is missing the boat here, potentially. Even licensing a few choice titles would seem like a no-brainer, just to make it seem like they’re open to the idea. In that same vein, Dark Horse seems oddly missing. Would love to have some Hellboy to make this even more complete.

An even more interesting question is what this means for Marvel, who has their own all-you-can-read digital comics subscription service that contains almost all of their back library and comics from as recently as six months ago. This also includes their Marvel Infinity motion comics and stories with adaptive audio. But it’s good to see that Marvel doesn’t see this as a direct competitor any more than, say, Comixology. They seem willing to put their content wherever eyeballs will find it.

And what this really seems like a great deal for is families. Scribs is highlighting their inclusion of comic icons like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Archie, Spider-Man, and, yes, even My Little Pony.

So, at least for this dad, whose kids want to read Ponies AND Marvel, this seems like a great buy. Plus, all those books, so I can catch up on my Kierkegaard, and my wife can listen to the audiobook of Gone Girl. There’s something for everyone.

We’ll see how this shakes out, and certainly would rather see DC (and Vertigo) get added into this mix, but this is a great start for hopefully something that is disruptive and revolutionary to the digital comics market.

More information from Scribd’s press release below:

SCRIBD ADDS UNLIMITED COMIC BOOKS TO ITS SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MARVEL, IDW/TOP SHELF, VALIANT, AND OTHER LEADING COMIC PUBLISHERS

Marks World’s Largest, Most Comprehensive Subscription Reading Service with More than 1 Million eBooks, Audiobooks, Comics, and More, All for $8.99 per Month

 

SAN FRANCISCO, February 10, 2015 at 10 a.m. ET — Scribd today announced that it is expanding its leading global subscription reading service to include unlimited access to more than 10,000 comic books from some of the world’s top comic publishers. This offering represents the first time such a rich and varied selection of comics from some of the industry’s top publishers – including Marvel, Archie, Boom! Studios, Dynamite, IDW/Top Shelf, and Valiant – have been made available in one unlimited digital subscription service. The selection includes fan favorites from Spider-Man to My Little Pony to X-O Manowar, and from Transformers to Archie, along with hit YA series such as Locke & Key and acclaimed graphic novels by creators Alan Moore, Matt Fraction, Gail Simone, George R.R. Martin and more.

“We are very excited to take this step in expanding our subscription service beyond books,” said Trip Adler, co-founder and CEO of Scribd. “This addition gives comics readers the freedom of unlimited reading, while also giving our ebook and audiobook lovers the opportunity to discover comics and graphic novels.”

Comics and graphic novels represent an $870 million market in the US, with a rapidly expanding and diversifying readership. Scribd is at the forefront of efforts to develop and shape the industry for the digital age by making it possible for readers worldwide to enjoy unlimited access to the comics they want across all mobile devices, as well as the web.

Scribd’s comics library will feature:

●        Classic Comics – Classic runs of the Avengers, the X-Men, Daredevil, Archie, Judge Dredd, the Rocketeer and more
●        Top Characters – Spider-Man, the Avengers, Betty and Veronica, Kevin Keller, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, My Little Pony, G.I. Joe, Bloodshot, Adventure Time
●        Major Creators – Alan Moore, Frank Miller, Fiona Staples, Darwyn Cooke, Mark Waid, Ed Brubaker, Renee French, Jeffrey Brown, Joe Hill, and many more
●        Acclaimed Graphic Novels – March, From Hell, Swallow Me Whole, Underwater Welder, Spiral-Bound, The Ticking, Too Cool to Be Forgotten
●        Award Winners – League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, 30 Days of Night, Locke & Key, Alec, Will You Still Love Me if I Wet the Bed?
●         Hit YA Titles – Ultimate Spider-Man, Runaways, Afterlife With Archie, Harbinger, Lumberjanes
●        Manga – Partnership with MediaDo brings titles from Cork and Harlequin Manga, including work by acclaimed artist Moyoco Anno
●        Leading Publishers – Marvel, Arcana, Archie, Boom! Studios, Dynamite, IDW/Top Shelf, Kingstone, Space Goat, Top Cow, Valiant, Zenescope

Readers will have the ability to browse comics in a variety of ways, allowing long-time fans to dive deep and find what they love and new readers to explore comics:

●        By Character – Character pages allow readers to follow their favorite characters through their series and guest appearances.
●        By Series – Readers can browse by title and read series entire series from start to finish.
●        By Curated Collection – Readers can browse over 100 expert-curated collections of comics, such as Incredible Team-Ups, Classic Marvel Moments, Zombie Horror, Welcome to Riverdale, Funny Women, Supernatural Romance, and more.

This addition of comics, along with recent eBooks and audiobook deals, increases Scribd’s library to more than one million titles, representing the largest unlimited-access offering of eBooks, audiobooks, and comics globally.

About Scribd

Scribd is the premier subscription book service with more than 1 million e-books, audiobooks, comics, and more, including New York Times bestsellers, Pulitzer Prize winners and reader favorites across every genre. Launched in 2007 by founders Trip Adler and Jared Friedman and backed by Y Combinator, Charles River Ventures, Redpoint Ventures and Khosla Ventures, Scribd is one of the most influential websites in the world. It is available in nearly every country, featuring 62MM documents in +80 languages, making it the world’s largest subscription reading service. For more information, please visit www.scribd.com.

About Marvel

Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy five years.  Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing.  For more information visit marvel.com.  © 2015 MARVEL

About Archie Comics

Archie Comics is the leading mass market comic book publisher in the world and the home to a wide array of the most popular humor, action-adventure and superhero characters in entertainment, including Archie, Jughead, Betty and Veronica, Reggie, Kevin Keller, Josie and the Pussycats, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, Afterlife With Archie, the Dark Circle Comics superhero characters (The Black Hood, The Fox, The Shield and more), Li’l Jinx and many more. Archie Comics have sold over 2 billion comics worldwide and are published around the world in a number of languages. In addition to comics, Archie characters have been featured prominently in animation, television, film and music. Follow Archie Comics on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and the Archie Comics Store.

About IDW Publishing

IDW is an award-winning publisher of comic books, graphic novels and trade paperbacks, based in San Diego, California. Renowned for its diverse catalog of licensed and independent titles, IDW publishes some of the most successful and popular titles in the industry, including: Hasbro’s The TRANSFORMERS, G.I. JOE and MY LITTLE PONY; Paramount’s Star Trek; Nickelodeon’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles; 2000AD’s Judge Dredd; The Rocketeer; Toho’s Godzilla; V-Wars from New York Times best-selling author Jonathan Maberry; Ragnarök from Eisner Award-winner Walter Simonson; Winterworld, created by Chuck Dixon and Jorge Zaffino; and Little Nemofrom the award-winning duo of Eric Shanower and Gabriel Rodriguez. IDW is also home to acclaimed imprints such as the Library of American Comics, Yoe! Books, IDW Artist’s Editions, and Top Shelf Productions.

About Valiant Entertainment

Valiant is a leading character-based entertainment company with a library of over 2,000 characters, including X-O Manowar, Bloodshot, Harbinger, Shadowman, and many more. Established in 1989, Valiant has sold over 80 million comic books, and today its characters continue to be forged in publishing, licensing, film, video games, and beyond. Since its 2012 relaunch, Valiant has returned to the fore as one of the most highly regarded publishers in comics, earning a Diamond Gem Award for Comic Book Publisher of the Year and multiple Harvey Award nominations. Visit them online at ValiantUniverse.com.

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UPDATE: And here’s Marvel’s press release:

MARVEL PARTNERS WITH SCRIBD TO MAKE SOME OF MARVEL’S GREATEST COLLECTED
EDITIONS AVAILABLE VIA SUBSCRIPTION

Unlimited Access to Hundreds of Marvel’s Collected Editions Starring Iron Man, Spider-Man, Hulk and More, All for $8.99 per Month

New York, NY – February 10th, 2015 — Marvel Comics today announced that it has partnered with leading subscription reading service Scribd to provide readers unlimited access to hundreds of Marvel’s collected editions starring Iron Man, Captain America, Spider-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, the Hulk, and more. This offering represents the first time Marvel Comics will be available via a subscription service alongside other content forms including eBooks and audiobooks.

“For decades, a driving force at Marvel has been the desire to put comics in the hands of new readers,” said Daniele Campbell, VP CRM. “Our partnership with Scribd allows some of Marvel’s greatest stories to sit alongside Scribd’s already vast and eclectic catalogue of content in an effort to reach readers who might not have access to a comic shop.”

“This partnership gives us the opportunity to not only bring devoted comic fans into Scribd’s world of unlimited reading, but also to introduce the entire Scribd community to the world of comics,” said Julie Haddon, Vice President of Editorial and Marketing at Scribd. “We’re excited to broaden our subscription service so that readers can discover more than books.”

Marvel fans will have the ability to browse hundreds of Marvel’s collected editions on Scribd by category, subcategory and custom collections curated by Scribd’s editorial staff:

  • Top Characters – Spider-Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, the Hulk, and more
  • Classic Comics – Classic runs of the Avengers, the X-Men, Daredevil and more
  • Major Creators – Mark Waid, Ed Brubaker, Brian K. Vaughan, Grant Morrison, and many more
  • Hit YA Titles – Ultimate Spider-Man, Runaways, Young Inhumans
  • Award Winners – Acclaimed graphic novels by artists from Alex Ross to Moebius
  • Curated Collections – Classic Marvel Moments, Heroes of Color, Spotlight on Jack Kirby, and more

Scribd is at the forefront of efforts to develop and shape the industry for the digital age by making it possible for readers to enjoy unlimited access to comics across all mobile, tablet, and web platforms. 

About Marvel Entertainment

Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media over seventy-five years.  Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing and publishing.  For more information visit marvel.com

© 2015 MARVEL

About Scribd

Scribd is the premier subscription book service with more than a million e-books, audiobooks and comics including New York Times bestsellers, Pulitzer Prize winners and reader favorites across every genre. Launched in 2007 by founders Trip Adler and Jared Friedman and backed by Y Combinator, Charles River Ventures, Redpoint Ventures and Khosla Ventures, Scribd is one of the most influential websites in the world. It is available in nearly every country, featuring 62MM documents in +80 languages. For more information, please visit www.scribd.com.