Librarians and Technology

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Digital Comics in the Library Pt. 1: The Birth of Digital Comics and Why should we care?

One of the most prolific American authors, James Patterson, has written 70+ books in 33 years.  Kishimoto, the author of Naruto, has published 52 volumes of the title since 1999. Bleach, One Piece, Fruits Basket and other popular manga are produced at a similar rate. DC and Marvel publish several trades a month and their movies often bring titles into popularity that haven’t been touched in years.  Then there are the indie publishers… One problem is clear when you are planning a graphic novel collection. Comics take up space.

Years ago, before the graphic novel boom in libraries, some comic fans found a solution. Digital comics. Someone would buy the book, they would scan the entire thing and then they would post them on the internet.  Some fans downloaded them so they could keep their physical copies pristine.  Others downloaded them because they had no access to them otherwise. Most people probably downloaded these comics because they were free. The comics came in numerous file formats, but a program called CBR or Comic Book Reader became the most common. 

What does this have to do with libraries? Currently, Overdrive is the main distributor of digital books in public libraries. The service requires numerous steps to access digital books as a measure of maintaining control of the digital content. In the last five years, numerous websites have popped up with an interface similar to CBR. They provide users with the ability to use their keyboard to easily navigate back and forth between the pages of a comic. Some of these sites are illegal. They provide copyrighted material to the public in an easy to consume manner. Other sites, such as JManga and Comixology, are creating legal, easy to use platforms for digital comics. Unfortunately, these services do not yet have subscription models for the library.

Marvel is also providing its only subscription service for its catalog of titles. This service boasts unlimited access to titles made available to its subscribers. Unfortunately, Marvel does have an established relationship with Overdrive.  A question on the FAQ refers librarians to overdrive for Marvel’s digital content.

But, how could they represent the future of our Graphic Collections? Some of the benefits of these services are obvious. Digital Comics take up less space, the distribution of titles is instantaneous, and the service is set up with consumers in mind. Both sites are easy to use and attractive.  A digital service would provide libraries with an opportunity to test out new series. This would provide access to independent series that are not being published nationally in print. It would also provide a method for users to browse what is out there without having advanced knowledge of the medium.

The negative aspects of these digital services are familiar to librarians who have worked with Overdrive and other subscription e-content providers. If JManga shuts down, what happens to the content we paid for? If we choose to stop our subscription, do we still have access to the content we paid for? How many users can be logged in at once? Is there a limit to how many users can access a single title at the same time?

The youth of digital comic initiatives are a mixed blessing. By reaching out to these sites on the ground floor of their commercial endeavors, we can use our budgets to influence the shape that a library subscription may take.