Marvel Comics announced today that it will be reducing its retail prices on new trade paperbacks by $2 to $3, depending on page count, beginning in July 2002.  According to comments by Marvel President Bill Jemas and EIC Joe Quesada, the change is being made in response to feedback from fans and retailers, who feel the current pricing structure is too expensive. 

 

This is going to make the trade paperback pricing landscape more competitive between Marvel, DC and Dark Horse, the three largest publishers of comic trade paperbacks.  Comparing prices for similar formats among trade paperbacks solicited in the March Previews, we found that Marvel trade paperbacks were priced competitively with the other two major comic trade paperback publishers; there was no clear pricing winner based solely on format.  If Marvel reduced the prices of its offerings $2 to $3 across the board, however, it would have less expensive offerings than its competition for a similar number of pages in many cases.  Of course, price and page count are not the only components of the value equation; paper and printing quality, the popularity of the editorial material, and the marketing and entertainment environment also affect such calculations for consumers.

 

Seen in the context of Marvel's announcement of ramped-up hardcover production (which produced a great deal of discussion regarding pricing, see 'Retailers Respond to Marvel's Hardcover Program' for links to the retailer comments we received on the subject), its trade paperback pricing becomes another component of an effort to expand book publishing.  Marvel was years late to the party on books; its moves to make up for lost time have to be seen as a positive for pop culture and book retailers that carry its products.