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NEWS: Tokyopop's BLU Boys-Love Imprint Raises Prices


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KrisEllieOphi



Joined: 02 Apr 2007
Posts: 111
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 12:39 am Reply with quote
You know, companies like Dark Horse add or include color pages without raising their prices.
I doubt the probably all of 2 pages of color is really worth a $2 increase in price.
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dragonrider_cody



Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Posts: 2541
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 12:42 am Reply with quote
Considering the state of manga in the US right now, and it's decreasing presence on store shelves, a price increase is to be expected. But at least you're getting something in return for it. I would be more pissed if they increased prices, and didn't add anything to it.
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FeralKat



Joined: 06 Jan 2005
Posts: 402
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 1:30 am Reply with quote
...Something tells me Tokyopop is using their Blu imprint to keep their main company afloat. =/

I like my yaoi, but it this keeps up, I'm going to have to cut back even more.


Last edited by FeralKat on Wed Jan 06, 2010 2:11 am; edited 1 time in total
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skafreak51



Joined: 13 Feb 2009
Posts: 212
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 1:30 am Reply with quote
dragonrider_cody wrote:
Considering the state of manga in the US right now, and it's decreasing presence on store shelves, a price increase is to be expected. But at least you're getting something in return for it. I would be more pissed if they increased prices, and didn't add anything to it.


I don't know where you live, but does it really seem that way?

I've only seen a growth of the manga selection in stores near me, especially Barnes & Nobles, where the section is much bigger than the american comics (and I'm referring to more than one store.)
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glitteringloke



Joined: 18 Oct 2008
Posts: 160
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 3:20 am Reply with quote
[quote="skafreak51"]
dragonrider_cody wrote:

I've only seen a growth of the manga selection in stores near me, especially Barnes & Nobles, where the section is much bigger than the american comics (and I'm referring to more than one store.)


people buy american comics in commercial book stores? really? Ours never had more than one or two sectioned cases. ever.

but aside from junjou, i'm pretty sure im' done with my yaoi titles, unless they acquire more of matsumoto temari's stuff. But i have the 500 yen-already includes color pages-versions of her stuff anyway.
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SteelyMag



Joined: 14 Oct 2006
Posts: 30
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 3:57 am Reply with quote
glitteringloke wrote:

but aside from junjou, i'm pretty sure im' done with my yaoi titles, unless they acquire more of matsumoto temari's stuff. But i have the 500 yen-already includes color pages-versions of her stuff anyway.


matsumoto temari = yes yes yes!

Speaking of junjou, did you notice when they raised the price to $12 on that title, the page count also shrunk? i'd assume it wasn't the only title, but it was the one i was gonna purchase. if it's going to $14 and staying skimpy, i'll pass. i have the artbook. i'll enjoy that. Smile
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Elisian



Joined: 23 Dec 2007
Posts: 74
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 5:56 am Reply with quote
The stores where I used to buy manga have downsized so bad, that you can really only find the newest stuff. Everytime I go in ther it seems like they've shipped back more product. My view is that if it's not selling so well, then raising the prices probab;y isn't going to help.

As far as the product goes, an increase in price doesn't bother me to much unless they do what they did to the rest of the Tokyopop manga. They raised the price, and significantly dropped the quality of the paper. Good jpb Tokyopop.
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Jaymie



Joined: 18 Jun 2009
Posts: 915
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 7:13 am Reply with quote
An increase in price only makes it so that you sell less copies, therefore they even more money. I wish Tokyopop would realize that.

And all of their manga should contain color pages for no extra fee. See Dark Horse / Yen Press.
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JohnnySake



Joined: 22 May 2008
Posts: 587
Location: Auburn Hills, MI
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 8:03 am Reply with quote
I've said this before, but it's a good time for a reminder, there's no reason for paying list prices, at least not in the American market. Amazon usually has discounts on list prices and Border's little membership thing is constantly sending 25%, 30%, and this week 33% off, coupons at me through email. Yes, the prices may go up, but you can fight back.

/smart shopper rant Wink
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dragonrider_cody



Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Posts: 2541
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 9:05 am Reply with quote
skafreak51 wrote:
dragonrider_cody wrote:
Considering the state of manga in the US right now, and it's decreasing presence on store shelves, a price increase is to be expected. But at least you're getting something in return for it. I would be more pissed if they increased prices, and didn't add anything to it.


I don't know where you live, but does it really seem that way?

I've only seen a growth of the manga selection in stores near me, especially Barnes & Nobles, where the section is much bigger than the american comics (and I'm referring to more than one store.)


If you have been paying attention to the manga market in the US, then you would know that the major book retailers have been reporting large losses amid sales declines. As a result, according to multiple sources, most book retailers have cut their manga orders up to 30%.

And like others have noted here, most of the book stores I've been to only carry the newest titles now. You use to be able to find older titles on the shelves at B&N and Borders, but no longer.

Also, to answer another post, books are not returned like DVD's. They are destroyed by the retailers. Only the covers are returned to the publishers for them to issue credit.
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dragonrider_cody



Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Posts: 2541
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 9:07 am Reply with quote
Jaymie wrote:
An increase in price only makes it so that you sell less copies, therefore they even more money. I wish Tokyopop would realize that.

And all of their manga should contain color pages for no extra fee. See Dark Horse / Yen Press.


Yes, but as has been repeatedly proven in anime and manga, decreasing the prices doesn't often improve sales either. And as many sources have stated, including the recent ANN Geneon podcast, an increased price doesn't always have a negative effect. It's more of a case by case basis.
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TsukasaElkKite



Joined: 22 Nov 2005
Posts: 4028
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 9:10 am Reply with quote
Oh goddamnit. 2 COLOR PAGES IS NOT WORTH RAISING PRICES BY $2!!!
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neocloud9



Joined: 06 Oct 2008
Posts: 1178
Location: Atlanta, GA
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 9:29 am Reply with quote
I'd already heard about the price increase, but the inclusion of color pages is news to me! I'm glad they're trying to give us a little something extra to make up for the raise in prices. They probably had to do this in order to stay afloat, which is a little scary. I don't want them to drop any series in the middle! But as long as I get my Junjo... (It'd be nice for them to finish releasing the FMP and Slayers novels too, but I guess that's just a pipe dream at this point.)
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Peebs



Joined: 07 Dec 2005
Posts: 424
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 10:29 am Reply with quote
[quote="dragonrider_cody"]Also, to answer another post, books are not returned like DVD's. They are destroyed by the retailers. Only the covers are returned to the publishers for them to issue credit.[/quote]

Paperbacks, magazines, monthly comic books get their covers (w/the barcode) ripped and returned to the publisher for credit. Never a graphic novel. I used to work at Borders and if we had ripped covers off graphic novels, the store would take a loss. Even newspapers that are not sold, the distributor would pick up at the end of the week and take them. We couldn't throw them away or we'd get no credit.

edit: actually the only time we ever threw a book away was when it had been discounted down to a dollar and nobody'd buy it. At that point the corporation decided to write the book off because the publisher is not responsible for it anymore.
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niastyle



Joined: 18 Dec 2008
Posts: 73
PostPosted: Wed Jan 06, 2010 11:48 am Reply with quote
Question? Am I the only person who remembers that thats the same excuse Blu gave when they raised the prices from $9.99 to $12.99. We got about 2 or 3 books with color pages and then they were gone. So now they raise the prices again, lower the quality of paper and printing (don't know if you noticed the new cheap paper they print the books on now, and the lack of glossy covers) and give us some b.s excuse like color pages. The same excuse they used the last time they wanted and extra $3 out of us. And if anyone has copies of Blu's first titles, they had color pages in them when they were $9.99.

It's like this, Blu sees that other yaoi publishers are charging as much as $15.99 for their titles, and they figure why shouldn't they. It's greed, plain and simple. All they are doing is making half assed promises of product improvement to an item where they have declined the quality and hoped you didn't notice, as an excuse or a way to blind the consumer to the real issue, money,money, money.
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