Diamond Policies Help Create Competition?

BOOM! Studios just announced an agreement with Haven Distributors. No big deal, right? Probably for one of those secondary or tertiary markets, eh?

Nope.

It's with the Direct Market.

When announced, many immediately recognized that Diamond's new policies regarding minimums would have an adverse effect on O/A (Offered Again) items. Many publishers that aren't moving as many units as DC Comics and Marvel would have very little chance at monthly orders of their back catalog conforming to Diamond's new standards.

Well, here is BOOM! Studios (starting to get recognized as having earned a place at the table with the big boys) striking a deal to get around Diamond on the policy and, it seems, issues with their timeliness of satisfying re-orders.

I could be making much more of this than I should (and I'm sure someone will tell me in the comments if I have), but this can only bode well for giving publishers and retailers more options. For a smaller (?) distributor, second printings of BOOM! Studios' titles (including their hot licensed properties) could be a big deal.

If there is ever going to be a change in the Diamond monopoly, moves like this can be the first baby steps in that effort.

Below is the press release on the move.

For Immediate Release:

BOOM! STUDIOS
ENTERS INTO DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT WITH
HAVEN DISTRIBUTORS

Los Angeles, CA - October 5th, 2009 - BOOM! Studios is pleased to announce a distribution agreement with Haven Distributors to distribute all second printings of their monthly comics to direct market retailers, this includes not only the core BOOM! Studios line, but also BOOM!'s line of Disney licensed comics published under the BOOM Kids! imprint.

"Retailers have been begging us to get our second prints into their stores at a faster pace for the past year," said BOOM! Studios CEO Ross Richie. "We're happy to be able to offer retailers another choice in getting an important part of our product line to their stores and into the hands of their customers."

The addition of Haven Distributors adds to the growing list of distributors offering BOOM! Studios and BOOM Kids! publications. This past summer, BOOM! Studios announced mass market distribution deals with Simon and Schuster and HarperCollinsCanada, with Simon & Schuster distributing BOOM! Studios and BOOM Kids! line of graphic novels in the United States and HarperCollinsCanada distributing in Canada.

Previous to the addition of Simon & Schuster and HarperCollinsCanada, this past March BOOM! announced a newsstand distribution deal for their BOOM Kids! line through Kable Distribution Services, Inc., best known amongst comic book fans for distributing Archie Comics throughout North America in the United States and Canada.

The entire BOOM! Studios and BOOM Kids! line of publications are offered in the direct market by Diamond Comics Distributors.

Retailers needing more information on how to order from Haven Distributors can call 1-877-HAVEN-50 or sign up on their website here:http://www.havendistro.com/retailers.html

About BOOM! Studios
BOOM! Studios (www.boom-studios.com) is a unique publishing house specializing in high-profile projects across a wide variety of different genres from some of the industry's biggest talents, including Philip K. Dick's DO ANDROIDS DREAM OF ELECTRIC SHEEP?, The Henson Company's FARSCAPE, and the original Mark Waid series IRREDEEMABLE. BOOM! recently launched its youth imprint, BOOM Kids!, with Pixar's THE INCREDIBLES, CARS, and TOY STORY, as well as Disney's THE MUPPETS. This year, BOOM! Studios celebrates its fourth anniversary.

About BOOM! Studios
Haven Distributors (www.havendistro.com) was launched in 2008 with the mission of enabling independent comics to succeed in an ever-changing market place. They provide a wide array of comics and related merchandise at competitive discounts with low minimum orders to direct market retailers. They strive to treat both their customers and suppliers as business partners, providing a range of order fulfillment services from wholesale distribution to web store management.