The Real Truth Behind the Marvel Price Hikes

[Harlekin]

I'd be interested to see how Shooter would handle the EIC job in this new world of internet and economical crisis.

 

[iloveclones]

From all I've read, Shooter wasn't all that nice to his employees. I'm sure more of that would have come through to the readers if he felt pressure to give updates to them every week.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Marvel's response at Comic-Con:

When a fan complained of the dollar increase on series like "Hulk," Loeb gave him a dollar. Taking the complaint at face value, Buckley said price increases came as a result of "how we look at the value of what we're producing. You may not agree with it, and I totally respect that. We look at the prices and the appropriate value for the content that's in it." McCann mentioned that added content will be in some titles to offset the increases, but Buckley said he "won't add content to rationalize my approach" and that he has made the call on what titles sell at what prices based on value.

Loeb giving the fan a dollar was cool, but Marvel themselves are just getting *****ier and *****ier with their answers regarding the $3.99 price point. It's really sad that they are unappologetic towards this.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Loeb giving the fan a dollar sounds kind of condescending.

 

[Anubis]

Marvel's response at Comic-Con:

When a fan complained of the dollar increase on series like "Hulk," Loeb gave him a dollar. Taking the complaint at face value, Buckley said price increases came as a result of "how we look at the value of what we're producing. You may not agree with it, and I totally respect that. We look at the prices and the appropriate value for the content that's in it." McCann mentioned that added content will be in some titles to offset the increases, but Buckley said he "won't add content to rationalize my approach" and that he has made the call on what titles sell at what prices based on value.

Loeb giving the fan a dollar was cool, but Marvel themselves are just getting *****ier and *****ier with their answers regarding the $3.99 price point. It's really sad that they are unappologetic towards this.

If they're supposed to go by the value of what they're producing, shouldn't they be paying us to read Leob's Hulk?

 

[TheCorpulent1]

"Value" = how high it is on the sales charts. If you think of it that way, they should probably be charging $5 or $6 for Loeb's Hulk. Of course, thinking of it that way is 87% likely to destroy your faith in humanity.

 

[Dread]

I don't get as annoyed when a comic that is $3.99 has more than 22 pages of story. It is when it doesn't, or when it is padded out with filler content, or worse, X-MEN GHOST BOXES which was basically 18 pages of story, script and sketch pages, at $4. I understand that Marvel is a business and all business will see how far they can stretch the wallets of their base. That said, the Joe Q era has become a modern era of almost farce level cynicism in terms of marketing decisions and responses to it. It reminds me of a lot of sports franchises, to be honest. Which isn't good. I can almost swallow a mini having an excuse to be $4 an issue. I have less sympathy for "just because the numbers are in triple digits".

There's really no middle ground between $2.99 and $3.99? Image has some comics that sell at $3.50, and those comics usually sell at below 13,000 copies a month (usually at 20 pages a month, to be fair). Hell, Marvel has lines of comics specifically for kids but keeps them at $2.99, while DC and Archie, ARCHIE that sells like 1000 copies a month for heaven's sakes, knock off two quarters for kids. It's insane.

I think the philosophy is basically a paraphrase of Carnage's immortal line in his ASM debut: "I'm chargin' you four bucks...because I can."

 

[Anubis]

Well, i'd hate to succumb to Misanthropy.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

I don't get as annoyed when a comic that is $3.99 has more than 22 pages of story. It is when it doesn't, or when it is padded out with filler content, or worse, X-MEN GHOST BOXES which was basically 18 pages of story, script and sketch pages, at $4. I understand that Marvel is a business and all business will see how far they can stretch the wallets of their base. That said, the Joe Q era has become a modern era of almost farce level cynicism in terms of marketing decisions and responses to it. It reminds me of a lot of sports franchises, to be honest. Which isn't good.

Yet sports represent one of the largest and most profitable industries in most first-world countries.

 

[roach]

Well with sports franchises sometimes they have to pay for the new stadium or that new player by raising prices. Marc Silverstri isnt costing Marvel 16 Million dollars for 4 years of comics and a bonus if his comic is in the top 10 of the month.
I agree that Marvel has an amazing level of cynicism towards the fans.

 

[iloveclones]

Comics don't have the tv revenue that most sports franchises have. If they did, maybe Marc Silvestri would be saying, "Hey, maybe some of that should come my way."

And new stadiums (which by the way, they get municipalities to help pay for) and player salaries are the cost of doing business for sports franchises. Just like paper, ink, and distrubution are for comics.

This is still America, right? Are we going to socialize the comics industry next so they start charging a "fair" price?

I don't believe Marvel has done anything to the fans but charge them the price that they think they will pay.

 

[roach]

If Marvel believes they can get 4.99 for a comic than they should say that instead of beating around the bush and giving multiple answers to the question. No one is honestly mad that they raised prices....its a business and we all know it...but to feed us a line about it is what is upsetting people

 

[Dread]

Whoa, whoa, whoa, being a little irritated about paying an extra buck for some comics for no reason beyond "testing the thresholds of fans during the worst recession in half a century while we rake in more cash on the corporate level from licenses than every before in our company's history" and all of a sudden we want "socialism"? Let's not jump a gun here.

 

[Anubis]

Viva la Revolution!

 

[hippie_hunter]

Off with Quesada's head!

 

[roach]

Off with Quesada's head!

nope fate and a spell of never death is the only thing keeping Bendis from being EIC

 

[Dread]

The only think preventing Bendis being an editor is the fact that he's flat out refused the position more than once. Apparently he doesn't like doing as much of the running around an editor has to and prefers being a writer so he can "work without pants".

Which is a shame. I've never found all of his ideas bad. Simply his execution for nearly all of them.

 

[hippie_hunter]

nope fate and a spell of never death is the only thing keeping Bendis from being EIC

Personally, I think that Jeph Loeb will succeed Quesada.

 

[roach]

you forgot the rule of Marvel...the dumbest outcome is what will happen

 

[Anubis]

Sooo, Leifeld?

 

[roach]

thanks for saying it out loud

 

[Colossal Spoons]

Personally, I think that Jeph Loeb will succeed Quesada.

Oh Lord lol

 

[iloveclones]

Whoa, whoa, whoa, being a little irritated about paying an extra buck for some comics for no reason beyond "testing the thresholds of fans during the worst recession in half a century while we rake in more cash on the corporate level from licenses than every before in our company's history" and all of a sudden we want "socialism"? Let's not jump a gun here.

Marvel did not cause this recession. Neither did Apple, Microsoft, Coca-Cola, Hasbro, or any other company out there making products and trying to make a profit. The banking system, along with idiot home-buyers did.

Marvel is not a non-profit getting a tax exemption. If they were, I would 100% agree with you. If they took bailout money (remember that banking industry), I would 100% agree with you. But they aren't. They are a publicly traded company whose shareholders actually want them to make as much ROI as humanly possible.

To say that profit-producing companies like Marvel (or DC, or Image) who actually produce something should boulder the burden of the recession, while execs at places like Goldman Sachs, take public money, post a profit, and return to business as usual (bonuses) is unfair, to say the least.

And to suggest that they should hold back on increasing revenues as some kind of charity gesture, would be no different than my boss suggesting to me that I not take my raise this year, because the economy is bad. And that's my fault how?

Now, again, I'm not saying this is a wise move, for the same reasons you cite. And I could probably name a few more that make this a risky business decision. But I absolutely support them in making pricing choices. And if fans don't like it, well, I'm taking a trip to Russia in a few weeks. I'll come back and report on the thriving comics business in a place that did believe that price controls were the way to go.

 

[iloveclones]

Sorry for the rant. It's very hard to be a capitalist lately

I need to get Ditko on these boards. He'd definitely have my back.

If it makes you feel any better, I also find Loeb's dollar-gesture to be pretty *****y (but funny at the same time....)

 

[Spider-Jay420]

If Marvel believes they can get 4.99 for a comic than they should say that instead of beating around the bush and giving multiple answers to the question. No one is honestly mad that they raised prices....its a business and we all know it...but to feed us a line about it is what is upsetting people

It doesn't matter what they say.

Joe Q says it's about cost increase and he is accused of lying about it, which upsets them. Buckley echoes the other guy about, "whatever, we're chargin as much as you bastards will pay us!" and come off like jerks, and that upsets people too.

They're damned either way.

Prices go up. On everything. since the beginning of money. The timing sucks, absolutely. But that's life, man. Don't buy it then. Stick it to the man! Power to the People!!

and Loeb giving the fan a dollar. I wonder how he did it? The context. Was he like, "yeah, I'm sorry my horrible comics are so expensive, young man. Here's a dollar back because I'm a hack. Sorry again."

Or was he like, "ya know what? Here's a ****ing dollar you whiney little *****! You'll pay 4 bucks for my **** and then you'll pay 6.99 for it and then you'll pay 8.99 for it, you little mother ****er, and you'll love it! *****!!"

Exaggerations of course. But I'm curious how that went down.