I really like digital comics. I like sharing them, reading them and discarding them when I’m done (hard copies are much more permanent to me) I like discovering new titles (and then purchasing a hard copy, a habit that translates to my music collection) and I especially love reading the volume ones of already well-established titles (ie X-Men, Iron Man, Avengers, Green Lantern).

I’m not going to lie, all of that is downloaded via torrents. I just checked up on my DC and Marvel iPad apps and while I think they’re headed in the right direction with their digital content I don’t think they’re quite there yet. My biggest gripe is this: cost. Individual issues aren’t too much - $1.99-$3.99 - but that all adds up especially if you’re purchasing a story arc or a chunk of back issues. Why aren’t arcs or volumes bundled into digital versions of TPB’s?

For example, I just looked at Birds of Prey. DC has 81 issues to purchase for $1.99 a piece. That’s $162 for the whole thing. Why not break it down, bundle issues and charge $5-$10 a bundle? Or have some sort of deal that’s cost effective for purchasing the whole series flat out?

Or with the new 52 stuff where a number of those titles have wrapped their first story arc: Buy issues separately at the cover price or buy the first arc for $8-$10, maybe cheaper for showcased titles. For that? I can think of four or five titles I would snap up, legitimately, and read and probably add to my ever expanding subscription.

I’m sure I’m not the first person to think of this and I won’t be the last. The basic idea, after all, behind putting an end to pirating is this: make good things and make them readily available. That these good products should be wallet friendly to boot should go without saying and ties in rather neatly to making your product all the easier to legally obtain.