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NEWS: Tokyopop to Restructure


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enurtsol
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Joined: 01 May 2007
Posts: 1310
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 1:57 am Reply with quote
I'm not surprised.
American manga sales slowed down to only 5% growth between 2006 and 2007.

First anime, then manga. Correction by contraction.
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The Xenos



Joined: 29 Mar 2004
Posts: 1101
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 2:10 am Reply with quote
Actually, I'd say that the manga and comics industry is a whole different market than anime. While they are connected, I can't help but notice that manga is simply cheaper to produce was well as cheaper to buy. I also thought I remember hearing someone say that piracy affected anime much more than manga, if it even affected manga much at all.

Also, in case you haven't noticed, the entire American economy is in a slump, people. So whenever someone complains about the anime industry or now the manga industry going down hill, I have to say, in the vernacular, "Well DUUUUUUUUUUH." Maybe if you paid attention to more than just anime sales you'd know the entire economy is in the crapper. Oil is going up. Food is going up. The government is sending out stimulus checks to people to put a bandage on the boo-boo.

That sales of entertainment like anime and manga are down is simply not a big surprise. Actually, considering how sales have skyrocketed in previous years a little plateauing in sales growth numbers really isn't bad at all. Hell, that sounds pretty normal.

and if I may toot my own horn again on this page,

As someone who has a blog on a site named Comics2Film, I couldn't help but add some commentary about TokyoPop's trumpeting about entering the "comics-to-film space". I also bring up a number of criticisms I've had with TokyoPop as well as contend a number of loose 'facts' they have in their press release.
http://www.comics2film.com/b/index.php?blog=11&p=731&more=1&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

Also, Heidi MacDonald's blog at Publisher's Weekly has this interesting post about prior speculation about TokyoPop.
http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2008/06/02/trouble-ahead-1-toykopop/
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Hon'ya-chan



Joined: 31 Jul 2007
Posts: 905
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 3:59 am Reply with quote
VLOXY wrote:
Why are they reading it instead of buying it?


Because they are lazy latchkey kids whos parents have nothing better to do that drop the little shithead at the mall and have the bookstore act as surrogate parents while they go off and drink at some bar while those little hellspawn take the better copies of the books off the shelves, bend them in all sorts of ways to ruin the spine and pages, and either dump them onto the floor, chair or shelves, all the while i'm wondering along with the bookstore employee why the last lone copy of Emergency Winspector Team #14 is missing from the shelf when the computer doesn't have it registering as being sold and I have to go online to get it, thereby denying the brick and mortar store the profit they need to stay in business, all because some little kid can't grasp the concept of basic economics.

And shut up, it was an intentional run-on sentence rant. It needed to be said. That, and George Carlin made me do it.

Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
Ah dang, I hope those 39 employees are able to find new jobs soon.


I hope it most of their piss-poor translators. They should be shot for giving us such atrocities like Battle Vixens and Initial D.
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samuelp



Joined: 25 Nov 2007
Posts: 784
Location: Tokyo, Japan
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 4:29 am Reply with quote
Hon'ya-chan wrote:

Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
Ah dang, I hope those 39 employees are able to find new jobs soon.


I hope it most of their piss-poor translators. They should be shot for giving us such atrocities like Battle Vixens and Initial D.

Actually, it's probably not any of the translators, per se. Tokyopop (like most manga companies) hire all translators as contract work, so the translators don't count as employees. However if they halve the amount of books they're releasing, that also halves the amount of translation contracts they get, so it might make some translators have to look for more work.
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midorihebi



Joined: 24 Oct 2006
Posts: 26
Location: Los Angeles, CA
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:07 am Reply with quote
Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
Ah dang, I hope those 39 employees are able to find new jobs soon.


I was one of the 39 people, and I hope I can find a job soon, too.

Hon'ya-chan wrote:
I hope it most of their piss-poor translators. They should be shot for giving us such atrocities like Battle Vixens and Initial D.


Like samuelp said, the translators are all freelance. Also, it wasn't them that changed what was being said in those series, so don't get mad at them. Battle Vixens was changed by the person who did its original English adaptation. And Initial D might have been messed around with too much for your liking in the earlier volumes, but the text wasn't drastically changed in later volumes.
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Sheleigha



Joined: 09 May 2008
Posts: 308
Location: Canadaland
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:12 am Reply with quote
The Xenos wrote:

Also, in case you haven't noticed, the entire NORTH American economy is in a slump, people.


Fixed. I can't stand to see it when Canada and America have so many similarities and yet, America is the only one that gets mentioned. Canada is suffering horribly as well because we too, are in the same continental boat. More jobs are getting laid off and more hours are being cut back. It's retail in general, concerning sales, which is at an all-time low this year. People just... are being more conservative with their money and can't afford too many extra things, for the majority. Someone's gotta pay for that ridiculous gas price :/

And simply put: if YOU want to keep collecting manga/anime, please DO buy it. Especially now is the time, or else... they may not be around for sale much longer, depending on how things go :/
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TJ_Kat



Joined: 11 Jan 2007
Posts: 86
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:45 am Reply with quote
Well, this pretty much completely dashes the slim hopes I had of them doing the last 7 Slayers novels. I was kind of hoping that the announcement of Slayers Revolution would generate enough interest in the Slayers title to prompts TP to finish up the books.
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Teriyaki Terrier



Joined: 26 Mar 2008
Posts: 1609
Location: Chihuahua Island
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 2:06 pm Reply with quote
samuelp wrote:
Hon'ya-chan wrote:

Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
Ah dang, I hope those 39 employees are able to find new jobs soon.


I hope it most of their piss-poor translators. They should be shot for giving us such atrocities like Battle Vixens and Initial D.

Actually, it's probably not any of the translators, per se. Tokyopop (like most manga companies) hire all translators as contract work, so the translators don't count as employees. However if they halve the amount of books they're releasing, that also halves the amount of translation contracts they get, so it might make some translators have to look for more work.


I wonder who was fired then? Acccountants? Janitors? Hopefully these people are able to find new jobs soon. Some of these people may have familes or chidren they must support.

I'll admit, I read manga at some of those stores, but I also buy manga as well. Viz Media and Del Ray have been the manga companies I've been supporting for about four years now. I also read some manga online, but most the series I read haven't been licensed by companies, only exist in Japan or are way ahead of the English translation.

However, at least when I read manga at stores, I am always careful to be gentle to the books. Someone else may wish to read the series. I also place the manga on the shelf when I am done reading the series, that way whoever has to put the book back has a slightly easier time.
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The Xenos



Joined: 29 Mar 2004
Posts: 1101
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 2:32 pm Reply with quote
More news and rumblings here
http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2008/06/04/update-tokyopop/

Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
I wonder who was fired then? Acccountants? Janitors? Hopefully these people are able to find new jobs soon. Some of these people may have familes or chidren they must support.


According to that, sounds like mostly layout designers.

I doubt janitors. You don't want to mess with janitors.
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samuelp



Joined: 25 Nov 2007
Posts: 784
Location: Tokyo, Japan
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 2:33 pm Reply with quote
Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
samuelp wrote:
Hon'ya-chan wrote:

Teriyaki Terrier wrote:
Ah dang, I hope those 39 employees are able to find new jobs soon.


I hope it most of their piss-poor translators. They should be shot for giving us such atrocities like Battle Vixens and Initial D.

Actually, it's probably not any of the translators, per se. Tokyopop (like most manga companies) hire all translators as contract work, so the translators don't count as employees. However if they halve the amount of books they're releasing, that also halves the amount of translation contracts they get, so it might make some translators have to look for more work.


I wonder who was fired then? Acccountants? Janitors? Hopefully these people are able to find new jobs soon. Some of these people may have familes or chidren they must support.

Editors, graphic artists, secretary staff, sales, marketing, etc etc...
There's a lot more to publishing manga than just the translator.
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LKK



Joined: 31 Oct 2007
Posts: 209
Location: Virginia, USA
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 3:21 pm Reply with quote
Two of the 39 laid off employees have posted on this thread. They were both editors.
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FanFicGuru



Joined: 11 Apr 2007
Posts: 136
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 3:45 pm Reply with quote
LKK wrote:
Two of the 39 laid off employees have posted on this thread. They were both editors.


?
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The Xenos



Joined: 29 Mar 2004
Posts: 1101
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 3:46 pm Reply with quote
You mean it pays to read other posts instead of just tossing in your two cents? Shocked

Good luck to everyone who got left behind in this corporate shuffle.

I also agree that many people don't realize how many people at the US distributor are involved with manga. Look inside the cover at the credits. It's not just a translator folks. There are a lot of people who do a lot of work between getting the license and getting that book onto your local book chain's shelf. (You know, the place you sit in front of reading the book instead of buying it. )

Also, it's not really the fault of OEL books that TokyoPop isn't putting out more Japanese books. Viz and Del Ray have got good contracts with some major Japanese publishers. Hell, Viz is owned by a couple of them. I'd venture that OEL was TokyoPop's answer when they couldn't get more titles, not the other way around.
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mufurc



Joined: 09 Jun 2003
Posts: 472
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 4:29 pm Reply with quote
The Xenos wrote:
Also, it's not really the fault of OEL books that TokyoPop isn't putting out more Japanese books. Viz and Del Ray have got good contracts with some major Japanese publishers. Hell, Viz is owned by a couple of them. I'd venture that OEL was TokyoPop's answer when they couldn't get more titles, not the other way around.

Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if OEL books were part of the reason why TokyoPop doesn't get Japanese licenses. At least I don't think Japanese companies appreciate that TP produces and promotes its own home-grown products for the same market that the Japanese publishers try to reach with their own manga, not only in the west but also in Japan (without much success, but that's beside the point).
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The Xenos



Joined: 29 Mar 2004
Posts: 1101
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 5:04 pm Reply with quote
To be honest, I don't think the sales of TP's OEL books are enough to worry Japanese licensors. Though maybe the mentality of TokyoPop calling everything under the sun manga does hurt. (MANGA the flaaaaaame thrower!) Or maybe Japan likes it that a generation of kids is being trained to worship the Japanese word and look to the land of the rising sun for Entertainment. I don't know.

I visited a number of different bookstores in Japan. I wasn't really looking for American stuff. In one general Borders like store, I went to the manga section. I saw Del Ray's recent Avril Lavigne book in Japanese. I was half tempted to buy it just to say, See now it's manga. Instead I grabbed a couple of Tsutomu Nihei manga. For like 500 to 600 yen for new books, how could I resist?
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