Manga News and Information
JapanAccording to the latest issue of Shounen Gangan, Fullmetal Alchemist mangaka Hiromu Arakawa's Juushin Enbu will be adapted into an anime. Source: Ultimatum Chat Mainichi Shimbun reports that the preliminary round of the 16th annual Manga Koushien, also known as the National High School Manga Tournament, has begun on June 18th. This year, Shogakukan and Kodansha will each send 3 representatives to scout for possible talents. Those scouted will received guidance from professional manga artists. The Manga Koushien has been hosted by the city of Kouchi since 1992. This year 295 schools from 46 prefectures entered the competition. Source: Mainichi Shimbun According to a report from the market research and consulting company Seed Planning, Japan's e-book market experienced tremendous growth in 2006 as a result of the popularity of mobile manga. The report estimates that the e-manga market will continue to grow throughout 2007, and will reach 71 billion yen by 2012. According to the report, Japan's e-book market tripled in 2006, reaching 28 billion yen. E-manga occupied over 2/3 of the e-book market at 19 billion yen, 5 times as much as 2005's 4 billion yen. Top 10 manga (6/06) according to Tohan.
Additional Rankings: Kokoro Media reports that a recent copyright ruling in Japan from a victory by JASRAC could have serious consequences on manga scanlation:
Via: Journalista According to PEACH-PIT's latest weblog entry, due to the recent trouble and sudden suspension of Rozen Maiden, volume 8, the manga's final volume, will carry only chapters 41 to 43 and contains no extra artworks. Source: Canned Dogs From Trendsspotting (via MangaBlog) comes an article that looks at the popularity of manga downloads in Japan, and whether the trend will spread to the West. Also included is a translation of the survey from Infoplant on manga downloads: Shogakukan's gross sale last February reached 147 billion yen, beating Kodansha by 1.4 billion yen. As a result, Shogakukan has, for the first time ever, overtaken Kodansha as the number 1 publisher in Japan. According to Asahi Shimbun, Shogakukan's success can be attributed to advertising revenue from women's fasion magazines (such as CanCam) and copyright fee. As for sales of magazines and books, Kodansha still beats Shogakukan by 10 billion yen. However, when counting earnings from other sales such as advertising fee, dividend from movies, and copyright fee, Shogakukan surpasses Kodansha by 11.3 billion yen. According to the July issue of Monthly Champion Red, Eat-Man and Ray creator Akihito Yoshitomi's latest manga Blue Drop will be adapted into an anime. More info will be released in the August issue of Champion Red, on sale July 19th. Source: ikimashou.net Japan's first annual Manga Proficiency Test took place on June 17th in 40 locations nationwide. Over 600 people participated in the exam that tests one's ability to draw manga. The test is divided into many categories and levels aimed at both beginners and professionals. There are 4 levels for the "General" category, 3 levels for "Manga Character," 3 levels for "Manga Story," 3 levels for "Manga-Drawing Technique" and 2 levels for "Manga Assistant." |
Manga Zombie
Finale: Panelosophy
An ongoing conversation about the philosophy behind manga both in the U.S. and abroad. Manga Ranking
Monthly charts of comparative manga rankings based on aggregate online sales listings from Matt Blind. |
ComiPress teams up with writer Udagawa Takeo and translator John Gallagher to publish an online version of the English-language translation of Manga Zombie.
