- $3.99 Comic - ECPM's - 27 cents
- $2.99 Comic - ECPM's - 20 cents
- Movie - $10 (Average running time lets say 1hr 30 min.) - ECPM's - 11 cents
- Rental Movie - $5 (Same time as above) - ECPM's - 5.5 cents
- DVD - $20 (Typical 2 disc with, say, 2 hrs bonus material) - ECPM's - 7 cents
- Video Game - $60 (Average length, around 15-20 hrs to complete) - ECPM's - 5-7 cents
- MMORPG - (A game like WOW costs $15 a month with the average player putting 22 hrs a week...its scientific, I Googled it) - ECPM's - 2/10 cents (yes that's two tenths of a cent per minute)
Now arguably, each and every DVD, video game, and movie are going to be different lengths with some people getting more and less out of the products, but its compelling that comics are nearing the top in terms of ECPM (Entertainment Cost Per Minute). More and more comics, especially from smaller publishers, fall in the $3.99 category. The questions that seems to arise is...why do we put up with it?
I think there are many reasons. Comic books are a very unique medium that you can't really get anywhere else. There is an interactivity in comics, where you play out the characters voices and some of the action in your mind...at least I do. The collectible nature of comics also comes into play. I have comics that are worth quite a lot more than I paid for them, but I also have comics that aren't worth the paper they are printed on. It can go both ways. What isn't calculated above is the other time we spend, and hopefully enjoy, on comics. Reading blogs, watching superhero movies, talking with friends about who could beat whom, all of that comes from the fifteen minutes where we suspend belief and delve into the an imaginative world.
I'm not arguing that the rising cost is a good thing, far from it. My pocket is stretched enough as it is, so titles are going to get the axe. Digital subscriptions like Marvel's Digital Comics are more and more appealing. I truly love comics, but the more that they go up in price, the more people are going to have to pick and choose where they spend their money. It will be interesting to see if this latest price hike will be swallowed by comic fans. I just hope the economy and the price adjustments don't hurt the little guys that do produce fine quality alternative material. What about you, what comics are you thinking of cutting out from your weekly pull lists?
Comments
One of the factors that I’ve found interesting during the past few months when I’ve had a bit more leisure time and have broadened my entertainment choices somewhat beyond the scope of this blog’s coverage is that even though the comic book costs more per minute than most other forms of entertainment media including books and audio cds (books or music) … there are many times that I simply don’t have the two hour chunk of time to devote to a movie. For me comics are just about the right time slice and even at that they lend themselves more easily to being read in a couple chunks if necessary. There are very few movies that I would enjoy pausing and coming back to tomorrow night. But a comic or book or an audio book can be enjoyed that way.
Great post! I’ve done some similar breakdowns as to gives me the most bang for my buck and hands down, comics are the most expensive. Comparably, paperback sci-fi novels (or any other paperback novels for that matter) are the cheapest form of entertainment I spend money on. I spent $7.99 on a paperback novel and it takes me hours to read it. With comics, I can go through eight bucks worth in less than 30 minutes.
Compounding the problem lately with comics is that so many titles now are involved in cross-over events that if you want to follow the story, you are forced to purchase tie-in comics that you wouldn’t normally read.
Rising costs do indeed play a role as well as does time. Over the years, I’ve found myself cutting back on my monthly pull when the prices go up. Additionally, there are some series that I like but just not enough to pick up every month. With those (and with many mini-series), I’ll just wait for the trade to come out. And most of the time, when the trade comes out, I’ll go to e-bay and/or Amazon and find them much cheaper than the cover price than most comic shops offer.
I often wonder what might happen to the Comic Shop owner.
As for digital comics, I’m excited about the prospect of downloading my books but until they’re able to offer the monthlies, I’ll probably hold onto my money. Personally, I dig the idea of having an entire collection of Hellblazer comics on a DVD.
Well, one way to get more out of your comics, read slower (ha ha). Just a joke. The cost per minute was sure a lot lower back in the sixities when I was paying 12 cents per comic. But then I could go to the movies for 35 cents also.
Just think, when comics become moving holograms, how much they will cost. But then you can combine your comic book and movie dollar together.
Dave
Well I only read about six titles a month but I’ve though it over and Booster Gold is getting the axe from my pull list. I’ve enjoyed it, but I can wait until trades come out without feeling I’m missing anything right now.
The rising cost of comics is a real drag on collecting these days. 30 years ago I collected just about everything, I was a regular in 4 or 5 shops in my area and had about a $50 a week new stuff jones, #1’s or hot issues I always grabbed 10 or 15 copies. My back issue habit could easliy run into a few hundred a week as I was always on the look out for deals and up-grades but that all changed about 15 years ago when Marvel killed off almost all their key titles and then restarted them at #1 completely destroying continuity to the story lines and issue numbers, anyone remember ‘Heroes Return’ I got so ticked off pretty much stopped collecting, in time I started picking up 1 or 2 titles for a while but never went back to buying what I had before the Onslaught fiasco.
Today I still don’t buy new stuff I like to wait and buy large amounts on line or where I find them it’s just much cheaper than trying to pay $3.00 or $4.00 a copy and any holes I want to fill I know enough collectors that I can trade the stuff I don’t read for anything I’ve missed, besides my son now buys todays stuff so he keeps me up to date on the current story lines and will lone me anything I want to read, as most of my buying today is for investment and resale.