Digital extras in Marvel HC's, $3.99 price point and other nonsense

KyleMoyer

Feel free to click the "dislike" button after reading this link because I know if there was one under it, I would.

http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/05/11/augmented-reality-content-for-marvels-avx-hardcover-future-of/

1. I don't like the way they're trying to get people to double dip by putting extras in the HC.
2. "Looking at the sales for Marvel and its competitors, it certainly doesn’t seem like the $3.99 price point is a huge barrier for fans or retailers. We believe the price of our comics is justified by the content and that we deliver an exceptional value for the price."

That quote is really further cementing my decision to stop buying new issues and just buy back issues.

fredzilla

I've always been a Marvel kid, but my Marvel reading has been reduced to Spider-Man, Daredevil, and the Oz books. I'll pick up a trade every so often (S.H.I.E.L.D.), but the price has really gotten to me. Not to mention company wide crossovers that have promised great things, and yet never delivered. I didn't drink the AVX Kool-Aid and despite the "glowing" reviews from the Geeks and other people, I still won't. This has freed up money that now goes to Vertigo, Image, Dark Horse, and other indie books. Fool me once Marvel, shame on you. Fool me 616 times...

BadDeacon

2. "Looking at the sales for Marvel and its competitors, it certainly doesn’t seem like the $3.99 price point is a huge barrier for fans or retailers. We believe the price of our comics is justified by the content and that we deliver an exceptional value for the price."

I say "good for them" if their customer base feels this way, but I certainly do not. The only Marvel book that I have felt like I got good value from in recent years is Daredevil.

Justin_TheBuck

Who wants to bet that the prices of the digital stuff will go up because they have to program all the AR crap? And of course all they will say is that "well the price is warranted due to the content." I'm getting to the point where I wish Marvel would just stick to making movies and working improving there video games.

MikeGallagher

And what is the deal with digital marvel? Their day and date comics do not often go down in price. They stay 3.99 for 6-8 months! And .99 sales on 20 year old comics doesnt entice me.
Now that I am on a strick budget marvel is easy to ignore. They have made it so difficult to follow one book without having to read several others in the same family. I can read whatever dc book I want and not miss out on anything by not reading the whole family.
What happened to the days of quesadilla mandating only one or two books per character? That made for some good forward motion. Things happened.
And as much as I love bendis' writing, I don't need him writing every book.

As for number crunching, they are keeping up with the competition by having that extra dollar and double shipping. It's like 3d film surcharges artificially boosting a poor gross. What would happen if they dropped to 2.99 and shipped once a month?