theOtaku announced that their myOtaku blogs have become 100% ad free:

On behalf of our 60,000+ myOtaku bloggers, thanks to: Fullmetal Alchemist, Mushi-shi, Witchblade, School Rumble, Tenchi Muyo, and Glass Fleet. It's rare for advertisers to actually sponsor the taking away of advertising and is a much appreciated gesture.

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In early July, Production I.G. announced its plan to acquire manga publisher Mag Garden on December 1st, 2007 through a stock swap.

Production I.G. has been experiencing a steady decline in profit for the last three and a half years. Last week Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Japan Economic Times) interviewed the president of Production I.G., Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, about the merger of the two companies and their business strategy.

Below is a translation of a part of the interview:

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TokoToko Editor's Misc. Note, a blog run by a female manga editor who has been in the business for over 15 years, has posted a multi-part article titled "The Reason I Quit as a Manga Editor." Below is a translation of part four of the article:

The Reason I Quit My Job as a Manga Editor Part IV

If you don't try something for yourself, you won't be able to understand: that's how it is with everything.

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Pfizer Incorporated, the pharmaceutical company that produces sildenafil citrate, otherwise known as Viagra, is currently serializing a manga titled Nisemono? (Fake?) by Hiroshi Motomiya on its Japanese homepage. The manga aims to help men who are suffering from erectile dysfunction.

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There's a rumor going around the internet that adult manga publisher Touen Shobo and its subsidiary firm, Tsukasa Shobo, have filed for bankruptcy. Touen Shobo published an adult manga magazine called Comic Jumbo, which was suspended on July 6th (August issue).

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Publishers Weekly reports that Kinokuniya, the largest bookstore chain in Japan, will open a new store this October in New York City. Among events planned for the one-week grand opening in early October are appearances by artists, editors, and translators from Viz Media and an Osamu Tezuka art exhibition.

From theBookseller.com comes an article on Little, Brown Book Group's deal with Hachette Book's Yen Press manga in the U.K. The deal begins in September 2007 with 7 titles being released in the U.K.:

Little, Brown's science fiction and fantasy imprint Orbit will market the Yen Press list in the UK. Orbit business manager George Walkley said: "Orbit has been watching the development of the manga market closely, and we???re confident that in Yen Press we have found the ideal publishing partner.

Earn Some Points, Get Free Products from DLSite.com!

HERNDON, VA - August 6, 2007 - DLSite.com announced their recently added new point-based system. When registered DLsite.com users purchase a software product through DLSite.com English site, points will be awarded to that user depending on the amount of money spent.

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According to Send2Press, Orange Lighthouse, Inc., in an exclusive partnership with Trend Pro, Inc., has just launched Ad-Manga.us. Ad-Manga.us is the U.S. division of Trend Pro's Ad-Manga program. The new division will offer manga contents for advertising to U.S. companies:

The Manga generation in the U.S. is growing quickly, and to attract them, and to inform them about new products and services, or to educate them on complicated matters, Manga is an effective tool and will open a new era for business advertising.

Source: Active Anime

BEVERLY HILLS, CA (August 2, 2007) -- The William Morris Agency (WMA) has signed TOKYOPOP, the #1 publisher of manga graphic novels in North America and largest supplier of manga entertainment in the world. WMA will represent TOKYOPOP's original intellectual property for film, television, digital, merchandising, and game development.

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