Joe Krolik of Comics America in Winnipeg, Canada comments on the news of DC Direct deciding to sell their products online directly to consumers (see "DC Direct Goes Online (With Exclusives)").

The idea of DC selling its collectibles online is fine.  Why not?  As DC says, give the opportunity to those without proximity to comic shops, the opportunity to get these items?  But... and it's a BIG ONE.  If this is DC's thesis, then why do they have to offer their own exclusives, effectively cutting out the direct market retailers (both brick and mortar and online) who helped build their collectible category sales?

By offering exclusives, it appears that what they are trying to do here is give current customers of direct market retailers and others the incentive to switch by being able to get the exclusives and the non-exclusive items all in one place.  This definitely hurts direct market retailers and flies in the face of all the goodwill that DC has up to now built with their superior marketing initiatives for the direct market.

DC needs to offer all its collectible products to the direct market if they expect the direct market to support them in all their marketing initiatives.

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