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NEWS: Viz's Shonen Jump Print Magazine to End Next March


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enurtsol



Joined: 01 May 2007
Posts: 14746
PostPosted: Thu Oct 20, 2011 1:42 am Reply with quote
gatotsu911 wrote:
Wow, that's kinda depressing. I was crazy about everything Shonen Jump back in middle school. What a shame to see it go. This is a pretty sobering reminder of the fact that the "anime bubble" is well and truly popped.

I haven't been a subscriber for years, but I might buy the last issue for old times' sake.


It's still continuing, just that it's online. Laughing
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The Xenos



Joined: 29 Mar 2004
Posts: 1519
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Wed Oct 26, 2011 11:23 am Reply with quote
There's a new ICv2 article on this:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/21346.html

Quote:
Once we had the possibility of doing a weekly publication digitally, it made the print magazine, not obsolete, but the content is not as fresh. We feel that manga in its native form is a periodical, a sort of live performance, as it were. We went with the print magazine in the first place because it was the closest we could get to that given the limitations that we faced at the time. Once the possibilities of digital came into play, doing something much more live and fresh came into play, having a print magazine lagging behind that became less essential.
I find this stuff fascinating! Comparing different sides of the medium of comics. Digital vs print, or rather digital print vs paper print. Comics of the east vs comics of the west. American readers vs Japanese readers. American manga fans have never really gotten the live theater taste of manga. At least not legally. Manga fans in America have pretty much relied in only buying the trade paperback collections of their favorite series. Shonen Jump was the only one to stay afloat with an anthology like in Japan. Yen Press tried it for a bit. Dark Horse tried it with the adult male seinen series back in the 90s with Pulp or with various genres in Super Manga Blast, sadly before I was really into manga. Raijin Comics came and went like nothing. Even Viz's shojo anthology went under. Shonen Jump is the only one that's stayed around. And even then it was delayed from the Japanese release.

Only now are we getting legal updates of manga about the same time as it is published in Japan. Yet even then it's only for Shonen Jump. No matter how much you like Naruto or Bleach, or how much I like One Piece, these are still kids comics. No matter how many 30 year old nerds read them, they're still for kids and should be read by them. If I could get a legal digital download of brand new chapters of more adult fare Berserk or Battle Angel Alita in English, I'd be all for it. (Well, if those titles came out sooner than once in a blue moon. Dammit, Miura. Stop playing J Pop Idol games!) Shonen Jump is a magazine of series made for kids.

Therein is a problem a ton of kids in America aren't buying a Kindle or reading comics online in subscription magazines. Now I could be wrong. Maybe they are, but I'd think their parents aren't quite as tech savy to have them buy an online magazine as opposed to parents buying their kids a big magazine full of Japanese comics at the grocery store. At least not the majority of parents and kids out there. I don't think the average kid, save for the ones that age who are huge manga nerds like my friends and I, is going to mind reading something a month old. And for the few die hards that do mind, they've got the digital option to jump ahead. No pun intended. So I don't know why they think print is dead. Not everyone is ready to go all digital, especially with kids who these books are for.
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Genet



Joined: 05 Jun 2009
Posts: 261
Location: USA
PostPosted: Wed Oct 26, 2011 4:19 pm Reply with quote
I can see this as being a good or a bad thing. With the e-magazine being able to put out chapters more frequently, we could possibly see more print volumes...I never bought magazines, simply because it wasn't something I wanted to do, but I'd not shell out money for an e-magazine. Not worth my money when I could buy a nice print volume.

And that's the thing- I don't ever want to lose that option of being able to buy collected volumes in print. I don't like reading on the computer/iPad/cell phone, it hurts my eyes. And that's what I think scares some people. With so many things transitioning to digital, I think some people are starting to wonder how much longer they'll be able to get their manga in printed form. Manga is a niche market, that's been hurt by a lot of things in recent times.

Manga, unlike novels, have a serious advantage in print vs digital. The quality of a good printed work is just so much higher than the quality of a good e-reader file. Something is gained when artwork is printed on paper- especially things like full-color pages and such. They look okay on the screen, like "Oh, okay, kinda cool", but I think you lose a certain aspect when you move a largely-visual medium to the tablet/computer/e-reader world.

It is not like a VHS vs DVD vs Blu Ray debate. Digital manga vs Print manga is a very different ballpark. There really is a difference between reading a manga on paper, and reading it on a computer/tablet screen.

I'm willing to pay a lot of money if more companies would do a PoD service. That's how much I like my printed volumes of manga.
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The Xenos



Joined: 29 Mar 2004
Posts: 1519
Location: Boston
PostPosted: Thu Oct 27, 2011 3:19 am Reply with quote
Oh yeah. Let's not forget, unlike American comics, Japanese comic readers toss their weekly and monthly magazines into the recycle bin. Only later do their buy the trade paperbacks of individual series to read. I don't know about American anime fans and their Shonen Jump collections. I can't imagine them keeping them even if they are on better paper than the Japanese ones.

I don't know if going all digital for the magazine format is too progressive or properly on the cutting edge catching the digital trend. I wonder if there are still enough meatspace print readers, especially with a kids book, that keeping magazines on grocery store shelves is a good idea. I know America doesn't read magazines and comics nearly as much as Japan. I forget if I took a photo of the huge rows of manga magazines in Family Mart when I was in Japan. Yet it was more comics then even regular magazines. Here you're lucky to find a copy of Jughead at the checkout counter or some Superman in the spinner racks or tossed in among the Tiger Beats. Definately always see a good presence of Shonen Jump places here moreso than native American comics.
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darkcat1



Joined: 02 Feb 2011
Posts: 32
PostPosted: Mon Oct 31, 2011 4:49 pm Reply with quote
I found out a few days ago when Viz offered me their digital service that I really have no interest in(I don't like viz's reader either) and I have USA jump since issue 1(sadly alot of it got destroyed when my basement flooded). What I liked about getting an actual magazine was the nice big comic book paper pages which are much better than the tiny graphic novels. I also don't have a ton of money to buy 50+ volumes of Naruto, Bleach and One Piece at $8-$10 a pop.

I won't be renewing Viz as you just lost a customer unless there's some manga you have that I really want in graphic novel form. Also I have no tablets or smart phones so I do not care. I can't always sit there and read junk off of a PC screen and also viz.com is blocked at my work. This really helped me with my short budget and I'll miss you comic book pages Sad
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lilredphoenix



Joined: 05 Jun 2011
Posts: 156
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
PostPosted: Tue Nov 01, 2011 3:25 pm Reply with quote
This is sad news to hear that another very popular magazine is biting the dust a lot of us having been buy and reading this magazine for many years and looked forward to every new issue coming out. It only seemed like a matter of time since the sister magazine Shojo Beat ended and maybe that was a prelude for things to come. Not everyone wants to always be so heavily dependent on using the computer for their source of entertainment or information, it is nice to have a physical copy of something. A lot of us spend 8+ hours day in front of a computer screen for work or school and some times the last thing we want to do is spend even more time in front of a PC to wind down and relax at the end of the day. Sad
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WiseMangaSage890



Joined: 09 Nov 2011
Posts: 1
PostPosted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 1:29 pm Reply with quote
This is serious for two reasons:
1. Not everyone has a credit card. Yo need a credit card to use this service, and many people who read SJ are young kids, some are who are age 6! They will be MAJORLY disappointed. And there are PARENTS who don't want their kids reading manga because of their violent nature, and would rather cut their own arms off then to give their kids a subscription for something that they fear will make them stay in their basement at 30 years of age or cause them to start a school shoot-out (psht...parents).

2. Even though EVERYONE USES TECHNOLOGY, we've relied too much on it, and in turn, it screws us over. For example, a friend of mine told me about his friend's father who had a great house and awesome job. He got introduced to WoW. He ended up playing it everyday, not going to work and soon lost everything. Only the mom is doing the best she can to keep the house from falling apart, but to no avail. Now, I know that World of Warcraft has nothing to do with Viz making SJ digital, but I mention this to show what happens when we put our whole lives on the internet, we start to lose our identities and we can turn into slaves for the digital version of the boob tube, and not take time to hang out with friends or go to school and work. I should know, because I almost became that as well. I seeked help and have made better time for myself. For me, Viz doing this, is going to make more Net Addicts like myself. It was much better in print despite the fact that the chapters are behind Japan. The Net and tech is making us become lazy. First the shopping online, then the streaming, now this. We need to stop relying on the Net. And besides too much computer time kills brain cells, just like TV. Remember, the screens carry radiation.
Now I'm not telling you to quit tech cold turkey, all I'm saying is be careful, and get out the house o0nce in a while, and get some fresh air or do some sports, it does a body good.
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aereus



Joined: 08 Jun 2010
Posts: 574
PostPosted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 4:43 pm Reply with quote
I doubt they are doing this to spite you folks. I'm amazed Jump lasted this long honestly. Even the US version of Newtype only lasted a few years. It's just that Jump was launching in the US right as magazine subs were in decline.

They are obviously winding down the print version because they can no longer support the print costs off the subscriptions. And I doubt something like Amazing print-on-demand is designed for something more disposable like magazine printing. Part of the issue is probably that the magazine is more costly to print than the Japanese counterpart. Jump in Japan is printed on newsprint with half-strength ink, so they can produce it incredibly cheaply.

Also, things like e-Readers and tablets are growing more and more popular and cheaper to produce. So I can see Jump sticking around for a long time still if tablet-based magazine subscriptions ramp up. The only catch is people are used to magazine-type content being free online these days. So I dunno how that will work.
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Redbeard 101
Oscar the Grouch
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Joined: 14 Aug 2006
Posts: 16935
PostPosted: Wed Nov 09, 2011 11:19 pm Reply with quote
I think all the people here with their knee jerk rage and spite should sit down and be quiet for a second and actually think. I would bet every dollar to my name that this move is due to finances. The simple fact many fans seem to forget about the fact that anime and manga are a BUSINESS. They have to make money and be financially viable to stay afloat. If they do not make money then you either have to change how you do business to find new ways to make money, or you go out of business. Hello Tokyopop shutting down it's North American division. There's the anime magazines that are now gone. Or how about the various anime companies that have gone belly up. Want more examples? Sure they've all made some bad choices here and there but at the end of the day it's all about the green backs. No money means no business and no business means....well no business. This also is just another sign of the times. Traditional print is making way for digital print and e-readers. Just as cds are being slowly but surely phased out for digital media. Don't have to like it or agree with it but it's just what's happening.
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Teriyaki Terrier



Joined: 26 Mar 2008
Posts: 5689
PostPosted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 12:50 pm Reply with quote
While is this rather sad news (this coming from a person who actually was a subscriber for Viz Shonen Jump mag for some time up until recently) but this actually makes sense to do this.

Even though I spend a great deal on time on the computer (both for school, work and for fun) but even I hardly even read any magazines anymore. It's much faster, easier and less expensive to read an article online than read it from a printed source. It's actually more environmentally friendly to have material online than to be printed. Not to mention the cost of printing something, especially with color. It's seldom ever cheap for an end result that is quality work.

Frankly, I am surprised Viz Media's Shonen Jump print magazine has lasted as long. The era of printed material is eventually coming to a close and Viz Media themselves aren't doing this to be mean and spite the fans.

They are likely doing this because of fiances, flat and simple. Times have changed in the manga industry and some of those changes have been rather devastating. Viz Media MUST be business smart, If no money is made, then Viz Media will be in trouble financially and there is chance at that point, they could easily face the same fate both Tokyo Pop, Broccoli Books, ADV manga faced.

But let's not forget about ADV themselves, Geneon, Central Park Media among other anime companies. Licensing both anime and manga is a risky move and it's a move that may cost more at the end of day to produce than any revenue to may be gained.

Like Psycho 101 said in his last post, sure some bad choices have been made here and there, but with each for profit company, at the each of the day, it is all about the greenbacks. It has to be to succeed in business these days. It's a heck of a chain effect but without any revenue coming in, the operation of the business can not occur. As a direct result, if no business can occur, there truly is no business.

In the 80's and 90's, even early 00's, paperback was king and was widely used. However, as I have said times have changed and either you change with them or not. But the consequence of not having with the times is being behind of times and once your behind the times, it takes work to become better informed once again.

I rather see Shonen Jump live another day with enough revenue to continue to license both anime and manga, then to see them use a business model that makes their losses exceed their revenue gain. Unfortunately, the amount of manga companies isn't what is used to be and there will be even less in the future if more business don't adapt to new business strategies.

But even buying manga these days has become much more challenging than it was years ago. Every book store, comic book shop in my area has gone out of business and the closet one is miles, upon miles away. But I am glad Amazon exists though.
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StudioToledo



Joined: 16 Aug 2006
Posts: 847
Location: Toledo, U.S.A.
PostPosted: Sat Nov 12, 2011 12:17 pm Reply with quote
The Xenos wrote:
Therein is a problem a ton of kids in America aren't buying a Kindle or reading comics online in subscription magazines. Now I could be wrong. Maybe they are, but I'd think their parents aren't quite as tech savy to have them buy an online magazine as opposed to parents buying their kids a big magazine full of Japanese comics at the grocery store. At least not the majority of parents and kids out there. I don't think the average kid, save for the ones that age who are huge manga nerds like my friends and I, is going to mind reading something a month old. And for the few die hards that do mind, they've got the digital option to jump ahead. No pun intended. So I don't know why they think print is dead. Not everyone is ready to go all digital, especially with kids who these books are for.

I feel once mammoth drug chains like Rite-Aid and Walgreens put the Sam's, Clark's, Ed's, Smith's, Corner and other Ma 'n Pa shops out of business, that was it for the way comics had been in our lifetime (not those half my age reading this). That was a ritual we all took part in when we had a dollar or so to spare for 32 pages of four color glory.

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Anymouse



Joined: 18 May 2007
Posts: 685
PostPosted: Sat Nov 12, 2011 12:43 pm Reply with quote
I echo what Xenos said. Are kids really going to buy this on-line subscription? I have my questions about this move. Maybe they will just buy the paperbacks, but that might be beyond their price range.
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animefreek101



Joined: 06 Oct 2012
Posts: 1
PostPosted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 3:20 pm Reply with quote
comicozi wrote:
with this viz obviouly doesnt care about the kids that don't have access to the internet either.
i sooooo agree i mean im sneeking right now i am soooooooo sad i just learned about this and this magazine introduced me to racio vampire and got me inerested after YEARS of ignoring it its sooooo sad Anime cry
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Tony K.
Subscriber
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Joined: 18 Nov 2003
Posts: 11265
Location: Frisco, TX
PostPosted: Sat Oct 06, 2012 8:41 pm Reply with quote
Locking this for the 11 month-old necropost.
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