Preview: That book I dont get to read because I wont pay up

[jmatt]

So they would have to prove that you personally cost the company money by not buying the material in question. Ameirca's laws are really restrictive and, IMHO, unethical when it comes to freedom of information on the Internet.

What you call freedom of information other people call their livelihood. That's like a bank robber saying that he didn't intend to earn all the money he stole, therefore it's his for the taking. He wasn't gonna earn it anyway, so what's the harm? Those rich depositors lie and cheat and steal, so they deserve it.

[ilzuccone]

So they would have to prove that you personally cost the company money by not buying the material in question. Ameirca's laws are really restrictive and, IMHO, unethical when it comes to freedom of information on the Internet.

What you call freedom of information other people call their livelihood. That's like a bank robber saying that he didn't intend to earn all the money he stole, therefore it's his for the taking. He wasn't gonna earn it anyway, so what's the harm? Those rich depositors lie and cheat and steal, so they deserve it.

take it. feel the power

[Brapbrap]

So they would have to prove that you personally cost the company money by not buying the material in question. Ameirca's laws are really restrictive and, IMHO, unethical when it comes to freedom of information on the Internet.

What you call freedom of information other people call their livelihood. That's like a bank robber saying that he didn't intend to earn all the money he stole, therefore it's his for the taking. He wasn't gonna earn it anyway, so what's the harm? Those rich depositors lie and cheat and steal, so they deserve it.

hahahaha no

its like if a bank robber stole 1 million pounds without the bank losing a single penny

if i pirate a comic its not like someone else's copy of that comic disappears, nobody is losing out if i never intended to buy it

[kjjohanson]

So they would have to prove that you personally cost the company money by not buying the material in question. Ameirca's laws are really restrictive and, IMHO, unethical when it comes to freedom of information on the Internet.

What you call freedom of information other people call their livelihood. That's like a bank robber saying that he didn't intend to earn all the money he stole, therefore it's his for the taking. He wasn't gonna earn it anyway, so what's the harm? Those rich depositors lie and cheat and steal, so they deserve it.

hahahaha no

its like if a bank robber stole 1 million pounds without the bank losing a single penny

if i pirate a comic its not like someone else's copy of that comic disappears, nobody is losing out if i never intended to buy it

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it? The bottom line is that the demand is there to read it (unless you're just a klepto), and that demand has value. Trying to rationalize it doesn't make it right.

[hunter_peterson]

So they would have to prove that you personally cost the company money by not buying the material in question. Ameirca's laws are really restrictive and, IMHO, unethical when it comes to freedom of information on the Internet.

What you call freedom of information other people call their livelihood. That's like a bank robber saying that he didn't intend to earn all the money he stole, therefore it's his for the taking. He wasn't gonna earn it anyway, so what's the harm? Those rich depositors lie and cheat and steal, so they deserve it.

hahahaha no

its like if a bank robber stole 1 million pounds without the bank losing a single penny

if i pirate a comic its not like someone else's copy of that comic disappears, nobody is losing out if i never intended to buy it

Exactly. The money that is "lost" to piracy is purely hypothetical, which is why they need to prove financial damage in order to prosecute in many places. To the companies that put out the most pirated content, the amount gained from the legitimate means is little anyway. In this specific case, it's less than a cup of coffee. Nobody's livelihood is threatened by piracy. It's a myth.

Anyway, I'm not fussed how I eventually read this story, as I will be very likely to buy the deluxe hardcover of the whole event that is very clearly going to happen. And were I to pirate LotG, my previous double and triple dipping on Valiant products would more than make up for the money they wouldn't make from single issue sales.

[hunter_peterson]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it? The bottom line is that the demand is there to read it (unless you're just a klepto), and that demand has value. Trying to rationalize it doesn't make it right.

Reading does not equal buying. Otherwise borrowing from the library would be theft. Also, it's not stealing if nothing is actually taken from someone else. It's more accurately forgery. And the demand to read it has value, but not necessarily the value at which it is being sold. Basic capitalism, that.

[kjjohanson]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it? The bottom line is that the demand is there to read it (unless you're just a klepto), and that demand has value. Trying to rationalize it doesn't make it right.

Reading does not equal buying. Otherwise borrowing from the library would be theft. Also, it's not stealing if nothing is actually taken from someone else. It's more accurately forgery. And the demand to read it has value, but not necessarily the value at which it is being sold. Basic capitalism, that.

Library books are paid for. Here's a handy rebuttal to most of the arguments being made to justify piracy in this thread:

https://litreactor.com/columns/top-10-r ... eyre-wrong" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Also, nothing physical is taken in a variety of crimes classified as "theft of services" (e.g. turnstile jumping, tampering with a utility meter, etc.), but they're still prosecuted as larceny.

[DirtbagSailor]

This blows my mind, but what can you do.

I would love the experience of a lot of things, but can't due to exclusiveness and/or price. It doesn't matter if it is a "real" exclusive or a "manufactured" exclusive; it is what it is at the end of the day, which in this case is something NOT designed for everyone to have.

This doesn't mean that I am justified in theft. As an example, I can afford a BMW or a Volvo, but I can't justify a high-end sports car. This doesn't mean that I should hate-on the company that decided to manufacture a high-end sports car for a ridiculous price simply because I can't (or won't) afford it; nor does it mean that I should break-into one and/or threaten to "borrow" it so that I can tell both the company and the owners where I stand.

We are not meant to have everything, nor are we entitled to have everything. Only so many people get the chance to *SQUEE* the prom queen, and this book is MUCH easier to get than she was.

As a matter of fact, I like the fact that I have hunted, bargained for, and bought comicbooks and/or art that no one (or VERY few people) have or ever will have. It might seem like an entitled statement to some, but if $20 with months to plan is just too difficult an obstacle to overcome then I really think there are personal and/or financial issues that exist there far beyond the comicbook collecting world.

I'm just blown-away that pages upon pages of detailed drama and/or polarized opinions on this small and almost insignificant marketed item have been posted.

Buy it or don't; it is that simple. Your opinion will not change the tide of the comicbook industry. They have decades of recorded data and market trends that tell them more than most realize and/or understand. They are doing what they KNOW will work, and will increase visibility/demand/income.

Additionally, this book WILL get around and unless you make ZERO effort to obtain a copy and/or share a copy then you don't deserve to read it. It is NOT Valiant's job to place this book into your hand damn-near free of charge.

I'm not looking to get into a huge debate, and will try my best to keep further opinions to myself. But I like that Valiant has opted to do this; I don't see this as a slap in the face to fans; I will get several copies; and I'm interested to see how the end-game plays out...

[hunter_peterson]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it? The bottom line is that the demand is there to read it (unless you're just a klepto), and that demand has value. Trying to rationalize it doesn't make it right.

Reading does not equal buying. Otherwise borrowing from the library would be theft. Also, it's not stealing if nothing is actually taken from someone else. It's more accurately forgery. And the demand to read it has value, but not necessarily the value at which it is being sold. Basic capitalism, that.

Library books are paid for. Here's a handy rebuttal to most of the arguments being made to justify piracy in this thread:

https://litreactor.com/columns/top-10-r ... eyre-wrong" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Okay, that example was less than ideal. My new example is it would be theft if you borrowed a book from a friend or even just found it on a completely deserted footpath. Reading does not equal buying, full stop.

As for the article, let's run through their points, shall we?

10. We're only hurting big business: All of the people who worked on the product have been paid before it goes to sale. This is often even true for novelists, as the publisher pays to publish the book in the first place. The only loss that could be argued is from hypothetical profits, which cannot be quantified and therefore cannot be said to actually be a loss. In the case of work-for-hire comics, it really makes little impact to the creators long-term. Unless the book is solely pirated, which has never happened. Even the Panel Syndicate series that don't require money to read are profitable, which suggests that people WILL pay if it is easy. Obviously this isn't true for most creator-owned comics and self-published products, but we aren't talking about those.

9. Authors already have plenty of money: I've never heard anyone say this, because it's dumb as hell, but it also doesn't apply to work for hire. The authors got paid months before it was published. Again, it only cuts into hypothetical profits. You can't steal something that will never exist.

8. The distribution method sucks: This is perhaps the most relevant to the discussion. If you can't get it legally, then you could never have paid for it anyway, so there is absolutely no loss to anyone if you pirate it. It just means that the work can be enjoyed when previously it could not. This is why in Australia Game of Thrones is almost exclusively pirated- it was taken off of every legitimate digital source after the second season. It's literally not available until the Blu-ray release, outside of the terrible and rarely used cable network.

7. Digital content is too expensive: Again, never seen this one. And for this comic it would actually be the opposite case- the digital copy would be far cheaper than the physical copies would be, most likely. And again, their analogies are false, because nothing is being taken from anyone. The flat screen tv analogy would make sense if you could copy it from thin air and then take the copy you made. Duplication does not equal loss, it actually counters it.

6. We would pay for it if we just had access to it: This seems to be true, especially if you remember the Panel Syndicate example. When you let people pay only if they want to, they still want to. And we Valiant fans would most definitely be likely to buy the book in question if it were available at an affordable price point. And we likely WILL still pay for it in the future.

5. What about libraries?: Substitute that for borrowing from friends and it becomes a better example. But still; this is work for hire. The payment has all been done, aside from the profits that don't exist yet.

4. Everyone else is doing it: This one doesn't speak to the core issue at all, but if nobody can access the material legitimately where you live, then your piracy isn't cutting into the profits anyway. The only reason for something to be widely pirated is that it is of limited availability- this means you can't contribute to those profits regardless.

3. We live in a different country so we don't get the movies/books/shows until later: There really is no reason at all for this in the Internet Age, so I'll place the blame at the feet of those producers of content that purposefully create the vacuum of availability that leads to piracy. It's simply stupid business, something comics thankfully have bypassed.

2. I already own it in another format: I think the article is simply wrong about this one. Especially if you have paid for it more than once, or have supported the same business in a similar way, then this is perfectly fine. Not only are you not actually taking anything from them, you're a real part of the profits that ACTUALLY exist.

1. Writers should just be happy to write: I actually have seen a lot of writers who would prefer that the work be read/watched regardless, even though they all prefer to be paid. But this one is obviously subjective. But in the case of work for hire; hey already got paid. You buying it later or downloading it now will not harm their bottom line substantially. Even taking royalties into account, the unit amount of that for one copy would be nothing to anyone in the West. Cents at most.

The key problem with all of see points is that it conflates "illegal" with "bad" and "copying" with "stealing." Neither of these are truly equivalent. There are valid reasons to pirate, as there are valid reasons to do anything.

But, if you don't like pirating, you can not pirate. It's really as simple as that.

[hunter_peterson]

This blows my mind, but what can you do.

I would love the experience of a lot of things, but can't due to exclusiveness and/or price. It doesn't matter if it is a "real" exclusive or a "manufactured" exclusive; it is what it is at the end of the day, which in this case is something NOT designed for everyone to have.

This doesn't mean that I am justified in theft. As an example, I can afford a BMW or a Volvo, but I can't justify a high-end sports car. This doesn't mean that I should hate-on the company that decided to manufacture a high-end sports car for a ridiculous price simply because I can't (or won't) afford it; nor does it mean that I should break-into one and/or threaten to "borrow" it so that I can tell both the company and the owners where I stand.

We are not meant to have everything, nor are we entitled to have everything. Only so many people get the chance to *SQUEE* the prom queen, and this book is MUCH easier to get than she was.

As a matter of fact, I like the fact that I have hunted, bargained for, and bought comicbooks and/or art that no one (or VERY few people) have or ever will have. It might seem like an entitled statement to some, but if $20 with months to plan is just too difficult an obstacle to overcome then I really think there are personal and/or financial issues that exist there far beyond the comicbook collecting world.

I'm just blown-away that pages upon pages of detailed drama and/or polarized opinions on this small and almost insignificant marketed item have been posted.

Buy it or don't; it is that simple. Your opinion will not change the tide of the comicbook industry. They have decades of recorded data and market trends that tell them more than most realize and/or understand. They are doing what they KNOW will work, and will increase visibility/demand/income.

Additionally, this book WILL get around and unless you make ZERO effort to obtain a copy and/or share a copy then you don't deserve to read it. It is NOT Valiant's job to place this book into your hand damn-near free of charge.

I'm not looking to get into a huge debate, and will try my best to keep further opinions to myself. But I like that Valiant has opted to do this; I don't see this as a slap in the face to fans; I will get several copies; and I'm interested to see how the end-game plays out...

Well said, though I disagree that the definition of theft includes Internet piracy. Making a copy of something doesn't take the original from anyone else. It's literally leaving the actual product alone.

[zlovemojo]

You are correct the term is copyright infringement, unlawful duplication and distribution.

[ilzuccone]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it?

That's an easy one to answer. Some people have 0 money to spend.



look at what we started dunlow.


For the record I don't think downloading content isn't stealing. I also don't find it morally wrong.

[jeremycoe]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it?

That's an easy one to answer. Some people have 0 money to spend.



look at what we started dunlow.


For the record I don't think downloading content isn't stealing. I also don't find it morally wrong.

That's an interesting set of morals where stealing isn't wrong

[ilzuccone]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it?

That's an easy one to answer. Some people have 0 money to spend.



look at what we started dunlow.


For the record I don't think downloading content isn't stealing. I also don't find it morally wrong.

That's an interesting set of morals where stealing isn't wrong

there is always a gray zone.

[kjjohanson]

If you didn't intend on buying it then why are you stealing it? The bottom line is that the demand is there to read it (unless you're just a klepto), and that demand has value. Trying to rationalize it doesn't make it right.

Reading does not equal buying. Otherwise borrowing from the library would be theft. Also, it's not stealing if nothing is actually taken from someone else. It's more accurately forgery. And the demand to read it has value, but not necessarily the value at which it is being sold. Basic capitalism, that.

Library books are paid for. Here's a handy rebuttal to most of the arguments being made to justify piracy in this thread:

https://litreactor.com/columns/top-10-r ... eyre-wrong" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Okay, that example was less than ideal. My new example is it would be theft if you borrowed a book from a friend or even just found it on a completely deserted footpath. Reading does not equal buying, full stop.

As for the article, let's run through their points, shall we?

10. We're only hurting big business: All of the people who worked on the product have been paid before it goes to sale. This is often even true for novelists, as the publisher pays to publish the book in the first place. The only loss that could be argued is from hypothetical profits, which cannot be quantified and therefore cannot be said to actually be a loss. In the case of work-for-hire comics, it really makes little impact to the creators long-term. Unless the book is solely pirated, which has never happened. Even the Panel Syndicate series that don't require money to read are profitable, which suggests that people WILL pay if it is easy. Obviously this isn't true for most creator-owned comics and self-published products, but we aren't talking about those.

I have to call BS on this. Most novelists normally have royalties kick in over some specified sales threshold; so while they may have received an advance, certainly part of the potential compensation comes after. I don't know Valiant's setup, but certainly some comic companies have a similar programs. But putting aside the creators, Valiant still has to pay for the production, design, and sales staff, as well as the cost of rent for their office. That may have already been covered for the month the book was produced, but the income from that pays for the next month, and the next book. Or, in the case where business loans are taken out, the check may have already been written to make the thing, but the proceeds are necessary to cover repaying the loans. One instance of piracy might make "little impact," but multiply that by everyone pirating and it adds up to a big potential impact. Again, Valiant's specific situation of having a big investor isn't particularly relevant. Your defense of the excuse is lacking.

9. Authors already have plenty of money: I've never heard anyone say this, because it's dumb as hell, but it also doesn't apply to work for hire. The authors got paid months before it was published. Again, it only cuts into hypothetical profits. You can't steal something that will never exist.

This might not be a popular excuse, but it's been made. See above for why it is BS. But I'll add that part of the reasons the profits won't exist is because people are stealing it rather than buying it.

8. The distribution method sucks: This is perhaps the most relevant to the discussion. If you can't get it legally, then you could never have paid for it anyway, so there is absolutely no loss to anyone if you pirate it. It just means that the work can be enjoyed when previously it could not. This is why in Australia Game of Thrones is almost exclusively pirated- it was taken off of every legitimate digital source after the second season. It's literally not available until the Blu-ray release, outside of the terrible and rarely used cable network.

But in this case, you can get it legally. Look, I'm on your side in regards to the opinion of the distribution method. I've been vocal in the other thread, I've complained to Fred Pierce about it, and I'm going to wait on buying Book of Death until it hits the dollar bins (which it's almost sure to do, considering the number of copies that will have to be ordered to fulfill the demand for the LotG mini), as I don't want the promotion to be seen as something that is a good idea that they should do again. Not every point in the linked article is relevant to this particular promotion, including this one.

7. Digital content is too expensive: Again, never seen this one. And for this comic it would actually be the opposite case- the digital copy would be far cheaper than the physical copies would be, most likely. And again, their analogies are false, because nothing is being taken from anyone. The flat screen tv analogy would make sense if you could copy it from thin air and then take the copy you made. Duplication does not equal loss, it actually counters it.

Again, this excuse is not relevant to this promotion because it's not being made available digitally. As for not having seen the excuse, it's been brought up many times on this board by those who think the digital edition should be cheaper. I agree with that assessment, which is why I only buy digital copies when they're discounted.

6. We would pay for it if we just had access to it: This seems to be true, especially if you remember the Panel Syndicate example. When you let people pay only if they want to, they still want to. And we Valiant fans would most definitely be likely to buy the book in question if it were available at an affordable price point. And we likely WILL still pay for it in the future.

I have no idea what the Panel Syndicate refers to. Again, this excuse is not relevant because you do have access to it. I'll point out that I don't agree with the article's assessment on every point, this being one of them. When the new Doctor Who (and later, Torchwood) series started in the UK, people in the US couldn't watch them because it wasn't being broadcast and wasn't available to buy. The article seems to take issue with this excuse because once the content does become available, people still pirate. So I think the issue isn't with the excuse, but the honesty of some of the people using it. But again, not relevant to this situation.

5. What about libraries?: Substitute that for borrowing from friends and it becomes a better example. But still; this is work for hire. The payment has all been done, aside from the profits that don't exist yet.

Libraries? Legal and not morally problematic. The book was paid for by the library. Borrowing from a friend? Legal and not morally problematic. The book was (presumably) paid for by the friend. I'll note that Elveen offered to lend the books to anyone to read if they would pay for the return shipping, which would certainly be less than the cost of a normal comic. In either case, one person at a time gets to read the book. But copying, digitally or physically, is not the same scenario. As for the profits, see the earlier response.

4. Everyone else is doing it: This one doesn't speak to the core issue at all, but if nobody can access the material legitimately where you live, then your piracy isn't cutting into the profits anyway. The only reason for something to be widely pirated is that it is of limited availability- this means you can't contribute to those profits regardless.

Again, not all items on the list are relevant to the case at hand. And again, it is possible to access the material legitimately. Several online retailers, including Ed, had the book for sale.

3. We live in a different country so we don't get the movies/books/shows until later: There really is no reason at all for this in the Internet Age, so I'll place the blame at the feet of those producers of content that purposefully create the vacuum of availability that leads to piracy. It's simply stupid business, something comics thankfully have bypassed.

This was a point of contention in the other thread about the book, but Ed managed to work out something to address availability.

2. I already own it in another format: I think the article is simply wrong about this one. Especially if you have paid for it more than once, or have supported the same business in a similar way, then this is perfectly fine. Not only are you not actually taking anything from them, you're a real part of the profits that ACTUALLY exist.

This is another point that I'm not in total agreement with the article on. I don't see a problem with ripping CDs and putting them on a computer, or having backup scans to read on a tablet for a book that you physically purchased and own. But again, not relevant to this situation because you're suggesting there's no problem with pirating a book that you don't intend to purchase.

1. Writers should just be happy to write: I actually have seen a lot of writers who would prefer that the work be read/watched regardless, even though they all prefer to be paid. But this one is obviously subjective. But in the case of work for hire; hey already got paid. You buying it later or downloading it now will not harm their bottom line substantially. Even taking royalties into account, the unit amount of that for one copy would be nothing to anyone in the West. Cents at most.

Addressed above. It adds up. But can you imagine what would happen if someone tried to tell a mechanical that they should just be happy that they're getting to fix cars. Or that a lawyer should just be happy to represent people in a court?

The key problem with all of see points is that it conflates "illegal" with "bad" and "copying" with "stealing." Neither of these are truly equivalent. There are valid reasons to pirate, as there are valid reasons to do anything.

But, if you don't like pirating, you can not pirate. It's really as simple as that.

This isn't a case of why I shouldn't pirate, because I'm not going to. It's a case of why those defending the practice are mistaken that there's no damage done by their actions.

It's really as simple as that.

[bygranddesign]

If EVERYONE pirated the Books

Valiant would be OUT of Business

That's the bottom line - there is a reason why Greg doesn't want to put links out on how to pirate the comics

if everyone has the same attitude that its not wrong -- it would hurt VEI (more than it does already).

And in the end - hurt's everyone because we won't have books to read.

Eventually ... Perhaps the Business model will need to be changed

I think CROWD funding is the future for most artists, writers and musicians.

[Jace]

I do want to mention one other thing in regards to the book and preview if you guys like the art by Juan Jose Ryp, I cannot recommend his book Clone from Skybound highly enough. It is a great read. 20 issues out so far and currently on hiatus but so, so good. Please go seek it out or get the trades.

Doesn't Clone have a very similar premise to the show "Orphan Black"?

Never seen Orphan Black, so I am not sure. I know they both contain clones. However the comic Clone came first. it came out in 2012. Orphan Black came out a year later.

[Jace]

I pirate when I cannot obtain things in the "legal" way. Example: I cannot purchase a way to play Mike Tyson's Punch-Out in a way that would benefit Nintendo, the creator of that game. You can buy Punch-Out with Mr. Dream (no Mike Tyson because of expiration of licensing deal), but not the original. Therefore, I play the original on an emulator. That might technically be illegal (but in this instance it is actually very grey even as far as laws are written), but morally, I see no problem.

As far as this book is concerned, it's not available digitally. I actually put my money down for all 4 issues (Thanks, Ed!), but I always read digitally, so I'll likely be seeking out a scan of this book to read in my preferred format.

I also pirate old TV shows for which DVD sets were never released or released many years ago and are now out of print. The company/creators don't allow me to give them money, so I download copies.

This is something I love discussing. In my opinion, the cottage industry GameStop has created with resale of games is much more morally wrong than pirating a game to try it out before buying it (if there is not a demo).

sounds like a lot of effort to rationalize stealing mike tyson's punch out.

i grew up with napster. i think everything should be free. fight the system!

I disagree that everything should be free (I'm not sure if you were joking or not), as I strongly feel creators (and the companies that take risk to get the creations made and distributed) should be compensated for their work. It just irks me that licensing/exclusives/cost-benefit analysis/etc. keep me from giving my money to creators/companies for a product. Especially when it is available "extra-legally". It's either laziness or strategy to create false scarcity. I tolerate neither. When I can give money to creators/companies for content, I do so. If I can't, then I'll pirate until I can.

Dude, you're not getting a Manimal DVD box set because no one else wants a Manimal DVD box set. Get over it.

First of all Manimal is sooooo bad that it is actually fun to watch. Perhaps it is just nostalgia for 9 year old me. This show along with Automan and Msfits of Science hold a special place in my memory. The show that I would VERY,VERY much like to get my hands on though is The Phoenix. Only 4 episiodes were made and I haven't seen them since they aired in 1982!


As far as pirating goes. Comics are expensive when you compare them to the amount of entertainment vs cost. If I pay $4 or $5 for a book and am done in 5 to 10 minutes that isn't a very good value so I understand why people do it. I myself like to buy the books to support the creators. I know a lot of creators personally and it just seems so disingenuous to me to say you are a fan of theirs and whatnot when you are stealing their work. That being said I have downloaded scans before and read them when I simply could not wait for my DCBS order to get here and had to read something immediately. However, I have also gone down to my LCS first thing Wednesday morning and bought books that were in my DCBS order and ended up with 2 copies because I wanted to read it so bad. Now that I live in Phoenix and have lots of good shops close by this is now an option.

I also understand very well why VEI has chosen to distribute The Legend of the Geomancer in this way. They are so good to their fans though so I have little doubt that the book will be available one way or the other down the line. Whether that is in a hardcover, or some other way. I also would not be surprised to them them given out to fans much like the Gold Books. Oooooo maybe there will be a LotG Gold, that would be awesome! I do want to mention one other thing in regards to the book and preview if you guys like the art by Juan Jose Ryp, I cannot recommend his book Clone from Skybound highly enough. It is a great read. 20 issues out so far and currently on hiatus but so, so good. Please go seek it out or get the trades.

I have scans of the VH1 and Acclaim stuff that a friend gave to me a few years ago. But I also own almost all the original issues (and will buy the few that I don't have as I find them). The digital scans are just easier to read than lugging out all my hard copies. I generally don't see a probably with having an illicit digital copy when you've paid for the content some other way. The important thing is that you've paid for it, which is important if you want to keep seeing more of it.

I agree digital is way easier to carry around and store. When I moved recently I had 46 short boxes and 12 long boxes it was a PITA! Digital solves this problem. Plus as you said if you are buying the hard copies anyway I don;t see a problem having the scans, you are supporting the company and creators.

[Newton]

I really do not understand the lack of tolerance for people expressing disapproval with this incentive. If I was not a big Valiant fan I would quietly just stop buying the books. Valiant would lose a long-time fan and maybe 2-3 others would step in to fill my place... maybe not. Because I love Valiant and do consider myself a fan (I have most of VH1 and all of VEI) I think it is all the more important to voice my opinion.

If you feel like you are Valiant's #1 fan by spending the money to buy this incentive and support it... great I am sure Valiant wants your feedback too. Just realize that by buying this book you are essentially voting this type of incentive into acceptance.

I hear all the arguments from Ed and Valiant about the business side of things. I will let people on the business side worry about how to make the business side work and whether or not this is necessary.

My role is a fan. I read the books and I decide on a constant basis whether Valiant is serving me as a fan. From that perspective I feel jerked around and I cannot support this type of incentive model. In my opinion this incentive serves only the speculators who will go where the opportunities lie at any given time rather than the loyal readers who stick around and sustain the brand long-term.

[Mr_Taco]

[Donovan]

To quote my favourite line from the latest timewalker.... tl;dr

Lol

I just reckon each dollar I SPEND is a vote for the books, content, and entertainment that I want to receive.

[ilzuccone]

If EVERYONE pirated the Books

Valiant would be OUT of Business

That's the bottom line - there is a reason why Greg doesn't want to put links out on how to pirate the comics

if everyone has the same attitude that its not wrong -- it would hurt VEI (more than it does already).

And in the end - hurt's everyone because we won't have books to read.

exactly. and these people aren't going out of business even with a few people pirating. so i don't feel bad when i do it… which isn't much anymore because i make a good living and buying is usually easier than stealing.

[kjjohanson]

To quote my favourite line from the latest timewalker.... tl;dr

Lol

I just reckon each dollar I SPEND is a vote for the books, content, and entertainment that I want to receive.

That *was* a good line, but I prefered "I can hear you leave out the apostrophe"

[bygranddesign]

If EVERYONE pirated the Books

Valiant would be OUT of Business

That's the bottom line - there is a reason why Greg doesn't want to put links out on how to pirate the comics

if everyone has the same attitude that its not wrong -- it would hurt VEI (more than it does already).

And in the end - hurt's everyone because we won't have books to read.

exactly. and these people aren't going out of business even with a few people pirating. so i don't feel bad when i do it… which isn't much anymore because i make a good living and buying is usually easier than stealing.

I'm not sure if you should be agreeing with me ... cause I do think its wrong

But I do understand that its an inevitable reality that people will look to get a product for free ..and its enough of a moral grey area that they won't feel like they are doing any real harm.

I think its a rising tide ... and you can either think differently and ride the wave or you can try to build bigger and bigger barriers

I think riding the wave might be the smarter move long term

Like Internet Radio -- Comixology should embrace free comics. Embed 2-3 commercial video's within a free comic that you are FORCED to watch.

Would the embedded commercials be more profitable than getting 3.99?

I think this would dramatically cut down on piracy as well -- i'm personally used to commercials when I watch TV shows or my internet radio over broadband.

If i'm Valiant I would go a different way next time -- make the comic completely free

Host it yourself or through some other digital comic partner -- Embed 3-4 video's within the comic that you have to watch in order to get to the next page. And PLASTER IT All over SOCIAL MEDIA! BRAND NEW FREE COMIC! Come and GET IT!

The videos could just be those youtube video's they make for upcoming comics

Or how about a little tease about Bloodshot Movie in 2017...?

How freaking cool would that be?

I think something like that could increase brand awareness and create more fans and maybe even be more profitable in the long run. It certainly would make the customers and potential customers a lot more happy than this promotion/gimmick.

[whovian]

Also known as Book of Death: Legend of the Geomancer...

http://comicbook.com/2015/06/15/exclusi ... ce/#Image6" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks real good. Already shows Nergal and references Dead-Side. Can't wait to pirate this online from someone else's PDF scans!

While I'm willing to shell out the extra bucks for this one, I never cease to be amazed at the corporations who spend a fortune to promote anti-piracy, yet they insist on not making their product available to the public reasonably-priced and/or quickly.

An HBO subscription just to see Game of Thrones? Movies not available on home video because a studio doesn't want to cough up the money for restoration/production costs? An exclusive Doctor Who audio adventure available each year only to subscribers of the entire monthly Doctor Who range? A comic book available only to fans who shell out money for 25 copies of another book? These choices encourage piracy, and they're generally just plain stupid.

As a Doctor Who fan who buys it all, and a Valiant fan who buys it all (except cover variants) I get to enjoy all these things (legally). But for those who are selective or don't have an excess amount of dough to spend on them, I can understand their motives to get the product they want by whatever means necessary. It's the creators and manufacturers who suffer, and there's nothing Valiant about that.