PC World
Marvel Comics’ new iPad app, which lets readers purchase new and old issues for $1.99, has some consumers feeling overcharged and some store owners seeing the end of their business model.
The app is a free download and includes a handful of free books. But access to both new and archive editions require a $1.99 in-app payment. Jared Newman at PC World spoke to comic fans and comic store owners in a dialogue that mirrors the ongoing debate between newspaper readers and publishers:
“Bernie Saavedra, who owns Gotham City Comics in New York … said that while comics on the iPad might be convenient, the loss of human interaction when visiting a comic store isn’t necessarily a good thing. ‘As far as my business, I think it’s an awful idea,’ he said. ‘We’re not selling it, we’re not making any money. We’re the retailers who’ve been selling it for what, 70 years? … It’s OK, but it’s destroying an industry.’ “