DiDio reiterated that DC’s business was publishing periodical comic books. Comic books are associated with an experience of holding and reading the physical issue, which cannot be replicated in a digital form, he said. Also, comic books are tied to the “collector gene.” Citing Marvel’s foray into digital comics, DiDio said, “To just dump 5,000 books online seems ridiculous. If everything is on demand, nothing is in demand, and if you have 5,000 things to choose from, you'll end up going to the same one thing you always did.”
DiDio also expressed concern with the difficulties in monetizing a digital distribution system, explaining that calculating royalties for creators would be a major headache.
That's the reason to avoid digital distribution? Because it's inconvenient? His biggest competitor has been spending tens of thousands of dollars on this, because they are convinced that it will make them even more money, and DC can't be bothered because it's not easy? I'm, quite frankly, astounded.
Comics, TV shows, movies, and music are being torrented and downloaded at an increasing rate. I am quite certain that Batman: Battle for the Cowl #3 is being downloaded as I type this. Digital comics are already a thing; creators just aren't getting paid. I can get that a lot of people are paper fetishists (I'm one myself) and prefer to read comics and books as published in a tangible, inky form. But I'm not everybody. Lots of people like to read on Kindles or even to read last week's issue of Superman on their computer screens. Comics aren't intrinsically a paper product any more than books are: until now, that's just been the best way to distribute them. Sure, they're art, but they're also, usually, commercial products intended to be sold for a profit.
I can't help but think of Art Spiegleman's remark that he wasn't sure if comics artists are "the vanguard of another culture or if we're the last blacksmiths." I take Spiegelman's point as saying that comics are a particular medium: they are very labour-intensive to produce and demand specific reading strategies that are often at odds with conventional entertainment media. He worries that, instead of being a challenging new way to tell stories and create art, comics are just a very difficult way of being nostalgic.
For a guy trying to sell funny-books, DiDio seems pretty determined to shrink his audience. If comics are actually valued for their content, then the "wait-for-trade" readers that DiDio so loathes are no different than the Wednesday shoppers. The means of distribution - pamphlet, trade paperback, digital iComic - doesn't matter. He seems, to my eyes, to be relishing the role as the last blacksmith. If comics are, as DiDio claims, primarily an outlet for collecting, then they're no different then stamps or coins. They are a product whose value is completely unrelated to its content. Rarity is the only thing that creates demand for collector's items. That's even worse than what Spiegleman was suggesting. In his lamentation, at least the creators are invested in a craft.
Really, it boggles my mind. It's pretty rare to see a businessman arguing that he won't sell a product because he can't figure out how. No one, apparently, is less enamoured with the DCU than its Executive Editor.
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