Now you can read over 13,000 Marvel comic books for the cost of an annual or monthly subscription fee.
I’ve always been a little hesitant about digital comics. Sure, they’re convenient, but I could never quite get past those fond memories of my local comic shop. Every few months I would snatch up a massive grab-bag of issues, usually coming to anywhere from $50-$150 dollars, and feel like it was a bargain. Still, technology’s progress marches on, making the purchasing options of my youth seem quaint and outdated by comparison. For proof, look no further than the Marvel Unlimited iOS app, which provides access to Marvel’s digital back catalog for an annual or monthly subscription fee. That’s over 70 years of comic book history, encompassed within almost 13,000 issues, streamed instantaneously to an iPhone or iPad near you.
Marvel Unlimited basically operates on the same principle as Netflix for digital comics. Customer pay either $10 a month or $60 dollars a year, providing instant access to Marvel’s content pending an available internet connection. New and classic issues are still being updated each week, allowing fans to easily catch up on recent events or distant lore.
Marvel’s digital comics subscription was already available for HTML, but the mobile convenience of an iOS app shouldn’t be overlooked. Marvel is even providing support to offline readers by allowing six titles to be downloaded directly to the device. While I certainly intend to support comic book shops, the prospect of reading entire runs of Spider-Man or X-Men might make me consider a $10 subscription, or at the very least the included free trial.
