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Post by adamwarlock2099 on Jul 2, 2015 14:41:10 GMT -5
I'd buy alot more comics if they were $1.50  I did buy a lot of comics when they were 1.50-1.95. But then at that age of my life I had like 50% disposable income. So I could spend $50-60 a week, whereas even by 2008 when I stopped having a pull list at a shop I was spending that per month. But even then I probably had more like 15% disposable income. And that was for a wife, two boys and myself. And during the last depression in the oilfield industry when my hours were drastically cut. |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jul 2, 2015 19:27:33 GMT -5
I used the official gov't inflation calculator to determine that $1 in 1995 is $1.57 in 2014 money, using that as the base $1.50 works out to $2.35. -M Ahhh.. I gotcha. That makes sense. Where there comics that cost 1.50? I remember $1.25 then $1.75. |
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Post by Randle-El on Jul 2, 2015 21:48:21 GMT -5
This brings to mind an article I read online over sktchd.com about how much creators (specifically, artists) these days are getting paid. Basically, it doesn't look good -- a lot of artists aren't able to make enough to make a decent living, and if they are on monthly comics the deadlines are tight enough that it prevents them from taking on a lot of extra work that would enable them to make more money. Meanwhile, page rates aren't all that different from what they were 30 years ago, while cover prices have been steadily increasing. Coupled with things like DC pulling half-page ads in their books, and Marvel getting rid of heavier paper stock on their covers for cheaper paper, makes you wonder where all the money is going.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 2, 2015 21:55:38 GMT -5
This brings to mind an article I read online over sktchd.com about how much creators (specifically, artists) these days are getting paid. Basically, it doesn't look good -- a lot of artists aren't able to make enough to make a decent living, and if they are on monthly comics the deadlines are tight enough that it prevents them from taking on a lot of extra work that would enable them to make more money. Meanwhile, page rates aren't all that different from what they were 30 years ago, while cover prices have been steadily increasing. Coupled with things like DC pulling half-page ads in their books, and Marvel getting rid of heavier paper stock on their covers for cheaper paper, makes you wonder where all the money is going. Wonder no more, it all goes right here:  |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jul 3, 2015 8:24:50 GMT -5
This brings to mind an article I read online over sktchd.com about how much creators (specifically, artists) these days are getting paid. Basically, it doesn't look good -- a lot of artists aren't able to make enough to make a decent living, and if they are on monthly comics the deadlines are tight enough that it prevents them from taking on a lot of extra work that would enable them to make more money. Meanwhile, page rates aren't all that different from what they were 30 years ago, while cover prices have been steadily increasing. Coupled with things like DC pulling half-page ads in their books, and Marvel getting rid of heavier paper stock on their covers for cheaper paper, makes you wonder where all the money is going. I wouldn't be surprised if a big part of this is the ballooning cost of healthcare. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 4, 2015 12:04:34 GMT -5
This brings to mind an article I read online over sktchd.com about how much creators (specifically, artists) these days are getting paid. Basically, it doesn't look good -- a lot of artists aren't able to make enough to make a decent living, and if they are on monthly comics the deadlines are tight enough that it prevents them from taking on a lot of extra work that would enable them to make more money. Meanwhile, page rates aren't all that different from what they were 30 years ago, while cover prices have been steadily increasing. Coupled with things like DC pulling half-page ads in their books, and Marvel getting rid of heavier paper stock on their covers for cheaper paper, makes you wonder where all the money is going. I wouldn't be surprised if a big part of this is the ballooning cost of healthcare. Do they provide healthcare to freelance artists and writers? |
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Post by crazyoldhermit on Jul 4, 2015 12:19:24 GMT -5
I wouldn't be surprised if a big part of this is the ballooning cost of healthcare. Do they provide healthcare to freelance artists and writers? No. Freelancers aren't employees so they don't get any benefits. No healthcare, no dental, no retirement, no unemployment, nothing. It's a crooked ass system and it always has been. The depressing thing about comics is that it's just not a very economical industry. They're expensive to produce and don't sell in the numbers they need to so the creators get screwed. If you break down the rates and the workload most artists pull less than minimum wage. Unless you manage to become a big name in the industry you'd honestly be better off working a straight 9-to-5. The rise of creator owned publishing and fan accessibility through social media are making it easier for artists to make dough but they're still looking at a ridiculous schedule. I saw one artist tweet something to the effect of "I finished early today so I was able to go out with my friends in the evening and I realized this is how most people live their lives every day" and Greg Capullo was recently admitted to the ER due to high stress after working 12-15 hour days 7 days a week. |
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Post by Prince Hal on Jul 4, 2015 13:49:25 GMT -5
Even if I were interested in current comics, I could never afford them.
I look back and think how easy it was for me to collect as many comics as I wanted even when I was working a minimum-wage job. I made $1.60 an hour pumping gas, starting in December, 1971. I know from checking Mike's Newsstand that I bought 23 comics that month (5 Marvels; 22 DC's) , totalling $4.75. That was the equivalent of three hours' work.
If I make the minimum wage today ($9.00 here in our progressive commonwealth), how many comics could I buy for $27.00?
Even if I subscribe and get a discount, what's the best I could do? Maybe 10 or 12? And there are so many more titles now that I could no way have the sense of knowledge of a company's "universe" as I was able to back in the halcyon days.
Oh and those DC comics were all 52-pagers packed with reprints -- which was part of the attraction -- except for a 50-cent Sgt. Rock 100-pager.
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Post by Icctrombone on Jul 4, 2015 14:37:42 GMT -5
I'd buy alot more comics if they were $1.50 Adjusted for inflation, the cover price should have been $2.35 in 2014... -M Does this mean that we're being overcharged? |
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Post by Prince Hal on Jul 4, 2015 14:44:45 GMT -5
Adjusted for inflation, the cover price should have been $2.35 in 2014... -M Does this mean that we're being overcharged? No one likes to pay too much for fertilizer. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Jul 4, 2015 14:45:40 GMT -5
Adjusted for inflation, the cover price should have been $2.35 in 2014... -M Does this mean that we're being overcharged? Well the cost increase factors in other things as well, including the rising cost of paper and fuel, as well as personnel costs including Healthcare and (when not being shamefully evaded) royalties and legal settlements owed to past creators. That being said, I have no idea if we are being ripped off. Up thru the 1980s, fans would mutiny over a nickel increase, but these days the industry is an ogolopoly. If DC and Marvel decide to raise prices, everyone just goes along with it. They complain, but, at the end of the day, if you're already willing to shell out $3.50 for ten minutes worth of entertainment, are you really going to draw the line at $4? |
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Post by Icctrombone on Jul 4, 2015 14:49:41 GMT -5
Does this mean that we're being overcharged? Well the cost increase factors in other things as well, including the rising cost of paper and fuel, as well as personnel costs including Healthcare and (when not being shamefully evaded) royalties and legal settlements owed to past creators. That being said, I have no idea if we are being ripped off. Up thru the 1980s, fans would mutiny over a nickel increase, but these days the industry is an ogolopoly. If DC and Marvel decide to raise prices, everyone just goes along with it. They complain, but, at the end of the day, if you're already willing to shell out $3.50 for ten minutes worth of entertainment, are you really going to draw the line at $4? I'm buying around 5 comics a month at 4 dollars a pop. I spend most of my money on comic shows where they average .75-1.00 each. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2015 14:50:49 GMT -5
Adjusted for inflation, the cover price should have been $2.35 in 2014... -M Does this mean that we're being overcharged? Probably not. Paper prices and gas prices have both outpaced inflation as well, and those are two major costs of companies printing and shipping books to market. Having a middle man like Diamond causes a certain need to raise the cover price to meet costs as I have pointed out before, of that $3.99 Marvel gets $1, Diamond $2 (but pays $1 so makes $1) and the retailer $4 (but pays $2 or a little more if shipping prices are included) so makes $2 or less. So Marvel gets $1 for every book they sell to Diamond, Diamond gets a $1 for every book from Marvel and every other publisher as well they sell to retailers (which is everything they bought from them usually due to preorder system of Previews), and retailers get almost $2 for every book they sell, but not everything they buy sells so they get stuck with all the unsold books, not Diamond or Marvel. So it's really Diamond who is making out the best here-not Marvel, not the retailers, and not the end customers. Now if costs go up, and Marvel needs to make 25 cents more per copy, cover price has to go up a dollar to achieve that because Diamond has to get their cut and the retailers have to have some room to make a profit as well. It's not as simple as cutting cover price to the end customer if Marvel wants to lower prices, the price has to work for everyone at every level of distribution-when comics were on newsstands they sometimes didn't get put out to take up shelf space because they weren't priced high enough to make it worth the seller's while. Lower the cover price to the point where it's not profitable for Diamond or the retailer sot sell them, and they won't carry the books. -M |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2015 16:21:25 GMT -5
They're expensive to produce and don't sell in the numbers they need to so the creators get screwed. I'm sure the huge army of executives and shareholders are doing fine though. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 4, 2015 16:22:35 GMT -5
Does this mean that we're being overcharged? Probably not. Paper prices and gas prices have both outpaced inflation as well, and those are two major costs of companies printing and shipping books to market. Having a middle man like Diamond causes a certain need to raise the cover price to meet costs as I have pointed out before, of that $3.99 Marvel gets $1, Diamond $2 (but pays $1 so makes $1) and the retailer $4 (but pays $2 or a little more if shipping prices are included) so makes $2 or less. So Marvel gets $1 for every book they sell to Diamond, Diamond gets a $1 for every book from Marvel and every other publisher as well they sell to retailers (which is everything they bought from them usually due to preorder system of Previews), and retailers get almost $2 for every book they sell, but not everything they buy sells so they get stuck with all the unsold books, not Diamond or Marvel. So it's really Diamond who is making out the best here-not Marvel, not the retailers, and not the end customers. Now if costs go up, and Marvel needs to make 25 cents more per copy, cover price has to go up a dollar to achieve that because Diamond has to get their cut and the retailers have to have some room to make a profit as well. It's not as simple as cutting cover price to the end customer if Marvel wants to lower prices, the price has to work for everyone at every level of distribution-when comics were on newsstands they sometimes didn't get put out to take up shelf space because they weren't priced high enough to make it worth the seller's while. Lower the cover price to the point where it's not profitable for Diamond or the retailer sot sell them, and they won't carry the books. -M It's not simply a cost of production increase though. Marvel used to underprice the indies by an easy 50-60%. Now their lower priced titles are priced the same, with their higher priced titles 20% more. Their cover prices have not been at the same pace as some other publishers. |
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