Graphicly Joining the Ranks of Self-Service Comics Apps

By Todd Allen

First Amazon tweaked their Kindle Fire file format from some (very basic) navigation to service comics and children’s books.  Then Apple’s slightly controversial self-service app came along, making it even easier (depending on how you view the legal string attached to that app).  Now Graphicly’s starting to roll out their self-service app.

Graphicly has a slightly different twist than what we’ve seen with the self-serve apps, thus far.  They’re emphasizing their service as creating a digital comics storefront and branding it yourself (presumably with an eye on the publisher’s website and social media like Facebook), as opposed to being listed in the catalog for Amazon / iBooks / Nook / comiXology / Graphicly, etc.  De-emphasize the app, emphasize the publisher.

That’s particularly interesting, since I know for fact that one of the things some of the larger comics publishers liked about the existence of app providers like Graphicly and comiXology when the digital downloads started in earnest, was that they could point to them and tell the retailers, “we’re not selling directly to the consumer — the app providers are just another store to us.”  Notably, Dark Horse has their own store, so maybe we’re closer to being over that mentality?

What’s also interesting is particular phrase on their distribution page: “All at one low price.”  A service fee for a service provider?  Interesting and another different angle.

The press release follows:

Graphicly Expands to Deliver Next Evolution in Digital Publishing

Building on its Cross-Device Marketplace, Graphicly Offers a New Platform for Authors and Publishers to Distribute and Market Their Content

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 23, 2012 – Graphicly is excited to announce the expansion of its innovative digital distribution platform to better meet the needs of authors and publishers of all types. The Graphicly platform offers automated self-publishing by converting, distributing and promoting image-based digital content across the most popular consumer mobile and eBook marketplaces including the Apple iOS Newsstand and iBooks, Barnes & Noble NOOK Color, Amazon Kindle store, the Google Android Marketplace, Facebook and many others, while streamlining the work flow, reducing production costs significantly and providing authors and publishers detailed real-time analytics. As the only platform that optimizes image-based content, Graphicly is uniquely poised to take advantage of the $23 billion publishing market, including the more than 300,000 self-published authors expected to produce a graphical work this year.

“Over the past few years, the team at Graphicly identified an unmet need in the digital publishing industry for automated tools to convert, distribute and promote image-based content,“ said Micah Baldwin, Graphicly founder and CEO.  “By opening up our proven digital distribution platform, we now provide these services, while giving authors and publishers full control of their content and revenue streams and a deep understanding of how readers are engaging with their content. We believe our customer’s books should be available in every marketplace imaginable, with the knowledge and support to properly market and promote them.”

Graphicly’s platform offers a one-of-a-kind opportunity for authors and publishers to distribute their books across a variety of digital channels. Utilizing Graphicly allows authors to upload their book, publish it to one or many platforms, and promote it via the channels they choose, while retaining full ownership of their revenue stream. With a brandable and embeddable reader, an author will now be able to provide its consumers the ability to buy and enjoy content from wherever the author chooses.

Content distributed via the Graphicly platform is available across multiple channels, including the Apple iPhone, iPad, and iOS Newsstand; eBook stores including Amazon Kindle, Kobo and Apple iBooks as eBooks and enhanced eBooks; Android devices, including the Barnes & Noble NOOK Tablet and NOOK Color and the Amazon Kindle Fire; and an industry-leading HTML5 web app allowing for publishing to any website or blog.  Graphicly is also the only distribution service offering books on Facebook, with more than 90% of its publishers using this channel.

Graphicly’s expanded distribution platform also delivers custom analytics which help authors and publishers tailor their content to how their audience is reading. This seamless experience allows control over how content is consumed, as well as insight into consumers’ behaviors, including how often they read a book, how far they read into a book, and more. For the first time, publishers and authors are able to utilize data, metrics and social media – empowering them to market their books in exciting ways and better connect with their readers.

“Upon publishing my memoir, The Boy Who Loved Batman, through Chronicle Books, I wanted to reach the largest audience possible,” said Michael Uslan, executive producer of the ultra successful Batman franchise of films. “Graphicly is the only digital content platform that, in an easy and simple manner, gives authors and publishers the ability to reach their audience in the places that audience frequents.”

Graphicly offers authors and publisher the ability to select the type of distribution they need, as well as the revenue model that best suits them – from a basic free offering to a flat rate per conversion, with a number of options in between. Web and Facebook posting via the self-service platform are free, with other platforms and services requiring additional commitment.

The new publishing platform is initially available to current Graphicly authors and publishers, and will be widely available in the next few weeks. Publishers and authors can sign up for more information athttp://www.graphicly.com/launch

For more information, or for additional press materials, please contact Chase Perrin at[email protected].

About Graphicly
Graphicly is a cutting-edge entertainment and digital content publishing platform designed to deliver what authors and publishers need to share their work with audiences across all digital channels, including the Apple iPhone and iPad (plus Newsstand); eBook stores including Amazon Kindle, Kobo and Apple iBooks; Android devices including the Barnes & Noble NOOK Tablet and Color and the Amazon Kindle Fire; websites and blogs through an industry leading HTML5 web app; and the only way to read, share and sell books on Facebook. Graphicly provides a system to publish and promote content, providing an immersive solution to tell, share and collaborate around story and understand how consumers are interacting with the content. More than 400 publishers and 6,000 creators from major publishers such as Image Comics and Chronicle Books, to indie creators from around the globe, use Graphicly’s platform to deliver and promote compelling stories and activate consumers with community and content. The Graphicly promotional network includes more than 100 million page views across more than 600 of the leading entertainment websites and blogs. For more information, please visit http://www.graphicly.com/launch