DC launching digital service with Titans and Young Justice
- Thread starter dahj
- Start date
Is that the way of the future? I remember a decade or so ago, everyone was pining for the idea of cable where you would only pay for the channels that you actually watched. But now we've reached the point where there's so many online streaming options, each with some unique content that folks actually want, that the total combined price is going to quickly get obscene. Is just paying for each service one or two months out of the year an option that more people are considering or going with?
You could do something like-
January: Netflix
February: Hulu
March: DC Universe
April: Netflix
May: CBS
June: Disney Play
July: Netflix
August: HBO
September: Hulu
October: Netflix
November: CBS
December: Disney Play
That way, you could spend a month watching all the new (or old) content that was added since the last time you had that service, and by the time you finally made your way through said content, it would be time for a different service with fresh material.
Or maybe a plan where you'd keep something year-round that you use heavily, be it Netflix or Hulu or whatever, and pick up the other services for just 2 or 3 months a year, as desired.
That ought to work for most services, though probably not for something that adds content far more regularly, like sports. Be it ESPN+ or something like the WWE Network.
Are many people doing this right now, or are folks sticking with services on a permanent basis?
Didn't we hear that it was expected to make it's way to the UK or Europe at some point next year? I could be wrong, but I thought we heard that.
What would be neat is if there were some single intermediary service you could subscribe to that would connect you to each of the other services one month at a time, rotating through them on a schedule of your choice (e.g. Netflix one month, Hulu the next, Amazon the next, DC the next, etc.), so you'd only have to pay one subscription fee (though it would probably be a bit higher than if you did it manually, since there's an extra business involved). Maybe something like that will emerge eventually, but it might be complicated to work out the issues.
I’m frustrated that it’s unclear about what comics will be available. I’m more interested in them than the shows. I’m more than willing to stop my Marvel unlimited subscription if DC universe was comparable. But, I suspect it won’t be.
I imagine the DC ones.
I expect it will be like Marvel’s system where there is a 6 month delay.
From what little info I’ve seen it won’t be as extensive as Marvel’s and possibly a rotating availability of content. So, not nearly as good as Marvel Unlimited if true.
It's not meant to be a comparable service. DCU is both cheaper and offers movies and TV shows, both old and new, so some limitation on the availability of comics is to be expected. If comics are the only thing you're interested in, best wait to see if those limitations are too much for you.
Ok. Sure. I’m glad it’s worked out for you.
Yep. That’s my plan.
Edited to add: I’m frustrated that a comic book company is more forthcoming about the tv content than its comic book content. And so far, I’m not that interested in paying 70 or so bucks a year for tv content I have scene already seen, I’m not interested in the Titans show, I’m curious but not sold on Doon Patrol. That leaves the comics.
I went to trade waiting for a few things years ago, none of them DC or Marvel. And I missed reading some of those characters. I would love it if they said what comics they are going to have available. Just some clarity. But, I don’t think it’s a priority. For a comic book company.
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I think the beta just started, they're probably still tweaking the content.
There isn't a full list of movies and tv shows available either.
Got a few hours to spare?! May as well watch the Introduction hosted by Kevin Smith.
Thing was a live stream, doesn't start for half an hour, but at least the countdown let's you know how far you need to skip.
Thing was a live stream, doesn't start for half an hour, but at least the countdown let's you know how far you need to skip.
Yeah, it's going to a rotating lineup of comics, I believe it's usually going to be the most popular stuff, stuff connected to the shows on the service, and ones connected to whatever movies are coming out next. I can't remember what they said about new comics.
I don’t like the idea that it’s rotating. Does it really cost them that much to just leave it up once they have digitized and posted it? What if I’m in the middle of something and they decide, nope, we are changing it.
I don’t mind being behind, but why rotate? I get emphasizing stuff to cross promote, but still.
I'm sure there'll be advance notice when things rotate in or out.
Having watched the introduction marathon (btw, how awesome is it that they got John Barrowman for the DC Daily team?), the comics appeared to be mostly first issues. Like, it's not the complete "The Dark Knight Returns", but only issue #1. It's not the complete Scott Snyder/Greg Capullo Batman, it's only the first three issues.
Now, I may have gotten a wrong impression about that, and it may also be that they'll add more books pretty quickly. But I have the suspicion that the comics part is mostly to get people who previously only watched the TV shows and movies hooked to then go buy the collected editions (there's the shopping part of the DCU service, they explicitly stated that you can buy comics there, not just merch).
Again, that's me speculating based on how I interpreted the presentation.
Now, I may have gotten a wrong impression about that, and it may also be that they'll add more books pretty quickly. But I have the suspicion that the comics part is mostly to get people who previously only watched the TV shows and movies hooked to then go buy the collected editions (there's the shopping part of the DCU service, they explicitly stated that you can buy comics there, not just merch).
Again, that's me speculating based on how I interpreted the presentation.
Hm. I have no reason to believe that. I’ll let it start and see how the reviewers are before putting any money down.
Nope, they've specifically said they will only put up a limited number of comics at a time, and change them periodically.
I was really surprised when I heard about how limited the comics were going to be, and the whole rotation aspect. I could see if they were getting them from someone else and had to pay for rights to post them or something, but they are all theirs, so I don't see why they can't just put as many as possible up permanently. It definitely seems that comics are a very low priority for DC Universe, which seems odd when you consider that DC is a primarily a comic book company.
Like every company, it's primarily a money-making company, and comics are a far smaller revenue stream for DC and Marvel these days than TV and movies. Heck, comics have always followed the lead of more profitable and widespread mass-media adaptations, ever since the Superman comics adopted Perry White, Jimmy Olsen, etc. from the Superman radio show.