Update: TOKYOPOP Confusing the Hell Out of Me
by Randall Fitzgerald on Sep.14, 2006, under america, manga
So, I wrote yesterday about TOKYOPOP unexclusiving some of their web-only titles to cheers of “Who cares?” and “Fuck TOKYOPOP in the first place.” but after having read a bit more about it, the situation looks a bit better for us, if not entirely fucking confusing. And by confusing, I mean to say they do plan to let web-only titles appear in stores, but they’re doing it in a pretty stupid way. Here’s the quote:
“Please note that details are still being worked out,” TOKYOPOP publisher Mike Kiley told us, “but in early 07 we hope to provide stores the opportunity to purchase online exclusives during the same limited pre-order window offered to consumers.”
So yeah, from the looks of it, retailers will be able to order web-only titles for their shops, but only during the limited pre-order window that is also open to consumers. That seems pretty stupid to me, and I’d also wager that it’s possible that larger book stores won’t bother themselves to make sure they order the books within a certain window. Also, TOKYOPOP makes no mention of how the re-order process will work, and whether or not retailers will be offered the wholesale price, despite them not extending such a price to consumers who would purchase the books at the same time. Time will tell on those spots, I suppose, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up for any of it.
September 14th, 2006 on 2:34 pm
Ahaha, great work TP, “let’s give them 100% access for those titles, but actually it’s just 5%”. It’ll be a way too big hassle for retailers to buy large quantities of those books even with wholesale price. Well, TP is just greedy for the money. If they do the same with their older titles that I’m still collecting, God knows they’ll be receiving mail bombs at that point. Just move are all of your OEL titles to that shitcan “user exclusive” store of yours and I’d be happy like no tomorrow.
September 14th, 2006 on 2:53 pm
No, no, see. They’re setting a trend. A trend wherein they make a shitton of money by charging retail price for books they otherwise would have sold wholesale. OH WAIT! That’s been done before. Greedy bastards. Oh well, like you said, as long as Battle Club keeps coming out in stores, I’m fine. As far as I know, they are only adding new titles to the list of Web-Only things. (not all new titles go web only, just a few.)
Also, this was the 1,000th comment! WOO!
September 14th, 2006 on 4:26 pm
Man, that even confuses me more, anyway I was reading the guideline to those who want their work revised, since I was writing a story, just for the kicks, and started reading their ‘Submission Release Guidelines‘, I just got lost… either i’m stupid, or they just plainly mix up a lot of crap. now to sit down and check their.. whatever they call it and see if i can make some sense out of it.