Madefire extends its digital comics app to iPhone and iPad

Digital comics publishing house Madefire - co-created by British comic creator Liam Sharp - has announced a major update to its revolutionary comics app, bringing it to iPhone and iPod touch for the first time.

The Madefire app, which delivers a fully-immersive, episodic comics reading experience, is now optimized for the four-inch Retina display on iPhone 5 and supports Facebook single sign-on in iOS 6. The app is also available for iPhones 3GS, 4, 4S, and for third and fourth generation iPod touch.

Madefire's distinctive format features episodic, 'short-burst' (10-15 minute) reading, and utilizes sound, music and motion - as well as special effects, like parallax and panorama, to transport readers deep into story worlds.

Madefire says it is also growing its catalogue of free titles and weekly releases of new episodes, giving readers even more opportunities to explore 'short-burst' reading.

We've downloaded a couple of stories here at DownTheTubes and it's looking slicker than earlier versions, although we're still not convinced by the size of lettering on the iPhone screen or some of the storytelling decisions when it comes to presenting speech balloons, for example - but there's no doubting the art is gorgeous and we're intrigued by the upcoming beta testing of its Motion Book Tool, which has apparently been heavily oversubscribed in terms of creator interest.

As part of Madefire's commitment to democratizing digital publishing within the visual storytelling space, the company is making this browser-based Tool -- on which all Madefire titles are built -- available to creators through a phased release.

The app includes a new 'Feed' feature, which gives readers an inside look into Madefire titles and creators, with special features such as 'The Making of' and sneak peeks of upcoming releases.

"We received a tremendous response for Madefire on iPad and wanted to bring this amazing content to millions of iPhone or iPod touch users around the world," said Madefire co-founder Ben Wolstenholme. "Plus, with iPhone 5, users will now be able to experience their favorite episodes and stories on the beautiful, four-inch Retina display."

The Madefire app currently features seven titles:

• "Captain Stone is Missing... " Chapter 1
• "The Engine" Episode 1
• "Houses of the Holy" Episode 1
• "The Irons" Episode 1
• "MONO" Episode 1
• "Treatment: Toko" Episode 1
• "Treatment: Mexico City" Episode 1

"Feedback about Madefire has been extraordinary," said Dave Gibbons, Watchmen co-creator and author of the original Madefire series 'Treatment.' "As a content creator, I am excited to bring my new stories and characters to iPhone and iPod touch users around the world via the Madefire app."

Madefire says it is currently the only publisher offering episodic, digital stories in an immersive Motion Books format. Content creators include world-renowned comic and graphic novel artists, as well as up-and-coming artists.

Founded in 2011 by Ben Wolstenholme, Liam Sharp and Eugene Walden, Madefire is backed by True Ventures, with angel investors including Sina Tamaddon, former Senior Vice President of Applications for Apple Inc -- who sits on Madefire's Board of Advisors.

The Board of Advisors also includes industry leaders like: Toni Schneider, CEO of Automattic (the company behind WordPress.com); Mike McCue, CEO and Founder of Flipboard; Dave Gibbons, co-creator of Watchmen, the bestselling graphic novel of all time; and Bill Sienkiewicz , widely recognized as one of the greatest innovators of sequential art.

• For more information go to madefire.com, or download the Madefire App for iPad, iPhone and iPod touch from www.madefire.com/iOS

Beano, Dandy go digital via Apple's 'Newsstand'

DC Thomson have announced The Dandy and The Beano have just gone digital through Apple's recently-launched Newsstand service, with The Beano currently in the Top Ten in the service's charts

First published in 1937 and 1938 respectively, the two national comic institutions join Commando in the App store, all delivering digital, enhanced versions of the comics, enabling fans to read their favourite strips and characters on iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch. 

Demonstrating the enduring  popularity of the comic brands is the fact that Apple are  promoting the free Beano app on the front page of iTunes and it is already sitting in the Top 10 downloads – only hours after the apps’ release.

DC Thomson says that even though comics are for children of all ages, the move into digital publishing underlines the company’s commitment to children’s literacy, "ensuring that our famous comics can be read by kids as widely as possible on all kinds of formats.

"Teachers, parents and educational experts all acknowledge the role comics have in providing the bridge between picture books and chapter books and with the increasing use of apps by children, we hope even more of them can now access our weekly, original and not-to-mention hilarious content."

“This is app-solutely fantastic! We’re all very app-y!" enthused Mike Stirling, Editor-in-chief of The Beano.

"Sorry, that’s app-alling!" he added. "The great thing about the new app on Newsstand is that it guarantees our fans can enjoy The Beano 24-7.  I used to read it snuggled up under the covers with a torch at night – nowadays, I’ll just cuddle up to my iPhone!”

Editor-in-chief of The Dandy, Craig Graham added:  “We’re incredibly excited about being available as a digital download. Now people can have the unique School of Mock that is The Dandy at their fingertips, wherever they are and whatever they’re doing.”

The Beano and Dandy apps are free to download via iTunes and, like the Commando app, also come with free issues of the comics (five issues of The Beano, but just two of The Dandy)  so that users can sample the kind of content they’ll get in advance, along with simple instructions of how to subscribe or download.

Payment is via the user’s iTunes account and digital copies are enhanced with interactive advertising, video and links to the existing Beano and Dandy websites – www.beano.com and  www.dandy.com

The downloaded issues - which did take a while to download - look great: navigation is very simple and you can zoom in on individua panels easily using the ipad or iphone's tap feature, then tap to zoom out. It seems a bit strange that there's a disparity between the number of free issues of The Beano and The Dandy but the former is definitely DC Thomson's flagship comic title, so it's understandable that it's getting the major promotion (and higher number of downloads, refelcting the popularity, perhaps, of the print titles). 

DC Thomson have developed both apps in association with Yudu Media – www.yudu.com – and are planning to bring a range of existing titles to Apple’s Newsstand in the coming months.

DC Thomson tell us there are no plans for archive titles just yet as they’re concentrating on all our existing titles. However, after we suggested it, they're going to look at the possibility of releasing single issues of older comics, which I'd suggest would be a good way to test the market for a wider re-issue of some of the company's much-loved but no longer published titles such as Warlord, Sparky and Starblazer.

The Beano and The Dandy are published every week by D.C. Thomson & Co. Ltd., based in Dundee. Other DC Thomson magazine titles include Commando, Shout, The People’s Friend, The Scots Magazine and My Weekly.  2011 sees the 60th Anniversary of the first appearance of Dennis the Menace – 17th March 1951 – The Beano have been celebrating this as “The Year of the Menace”.

• Check out The Beano app on iTunes here
 
• Check out The Dandy app here
 

How it Works...

• A Beano or Dandy digital subscription lets you read every issue of each comic on your iPhone and iPad as they come out. Each comic has a separate app.


• You can buy each individual issue of the Beano or The Dandy digitally for just £1.49

• The apps will remind you every week when the new Beano or Dandy is ready to give your chuckle muscles a workout, but if you buy a digital subscription to the Beano or Dandy, every issue will be delivered straight to your iPhone or Ipad each week. A 6 month subscription costs just £24.49 and a 12-month subscription costs £47.99.

• Once your subscription starts, you can't cancel until it ends, so make sure you choose the right one for you.Unless you tell DC Thomson otherwise, your subscription will auto-renew.

• The apps are free to download for iPhone, iPod touch or iPad running on iOS 3.2 or later and include read free issues right away!

• Users of The Beano and Dandy apps can choose to subscribe and receive every issue automatically - £24.49 for 6 months and £47.99 for 1 year. Or they can download the apps for free and pay £1.49 for individual issues.

The Beano and The Dandy © 2011 DC Thomson

More Jack Staff issues released for iPhone

A quick plug, courtesy of digital comics distributor Comixology, to remind folk here that Paul Grist's wonderful Jack Staff is available on iPhone and more.

Out now are Issue 9 and 10, with Issue 9 offering "Titanic team-up action as Britain's Greatest Hero, Jack Staff, and Castletown's Cast Iron Champrion, Tom Tom the Robot Man, join forces in the hunt for superhero-hating Detective Inspector Maveryk!

You'll also learn the full details of the Freedom Fighters' battle to halt the Nazi invasion of Castletown in 1942.

In Issue 10, it's time for more action from Karl Stringer, a man who was just a thief until he stole the Claw, a strange metal glove that bonded with his own hand and gave him the power of invisibility! He became the mysterious Super Villain known as The Claw - until the police caught up with him.

Right now he's called Ben Kurmer and he's part of Q, the enigmatic investigators of the Question Mark Crimes – only when he gets caught up in a diamond robbery, he has to decide if he's really a hero or a villain!


• More info on Issue 9 of Jack Staff on the Comixology site


• More info on Issue 10 of Jack Staff on the Comixology site

• More about Jack Staff on Wikipedia

Wallace & Gromit are a Digital Comic Hit

Titan Publishing are reporting a huge success for their Wallace & Gromit digital comic, which launched last month (see news story). The strip is taking the iPhone app charts by storm and is currently ranked number one in the UK free books app store, a first for a British comic!

The comic has also risen to the number three spot overall in the free apps chart and all four paid for Wallace & Gromit comic apps are currently within the top 20 paid apps in the UK book chart.

With over 170,000 downloads of the Wallace & Gromit free app around the world, it’s not only the British who apparently can’t get enough of Aardman Animation’s iconic duo – it’s also currently the number one free book download in Australia, New Zealand and Finland.

"We've been amazed at how well our first app has done," commented Wallace & Gromit digital comics editor Ned Hartley. "Wallace & Gromit is such a great brand, and iPhone users obviously love them as much as we do!"

• You can download the first Wallace & Gromit Comic, ‘The W Files’ for free at www.wallaceandgromitcomics.com, and there are four other fantastic Wallace & Gromit comics available at the app store, for just 59p each.

New "Soldiers Zero" iphone Comic Launched

US e-publisher Underwater Samurai Studios Publishing have just released their first made for digital comic, Soldiers Zero, utilising technology developed by Irish iphone comics makers Infurious Republic, the creators of digital titles such as Beatnik High and the controversial Murderdrome, which was created by PJ Holden and Al Ewing.

Written by Rob McClellan with art by Martin Montiel (The Darkness, Legendary), Chris Summers (G.I. Joe) and Charles Pritchett (Noble Causes), the first issue of Soldiers Zero follows the exploits of four prototype super-soldiers deployed to Afghanistan in August 2007, and the tragedy that befalls them.

UWS say the great-looking adventure strip, which runs to 185 screens and costs just 99 cents, is the start of an ongoing digital comic series made exclusively for the digital market, and the first salvo in a bold digital publishing agenda.

Back in January, Rob McClellan, who is a US naval officer, and his two partners Tim Welch and Tom James, formed UWS Publishing to produce content primarily for digital devices, a drastic departure from the current approach to publishing.

"People keep telling me that comics can only make money in print, but there are over five million iPhones out there being used every day," says McClellan.

"Even a quarter of a percent of iphone market share is 12,500 downloads – that's much better than most books by small publishers would ever do in print."

While the digital comic market is something now finally being embraced by large publishers such as Marvel, Rob feels there are opportunities for strong independent titles on mobile.

“I don't view this as a competition thing, actually” he says “Marvel's entrance to the scene is a fantastic indicator for digital comics. By placing their comics to the iphone, they are legitimizing this type of content and bringing a lot of die hard paper fans to the small screen. I think it's fantastic – the better they do, the better the digital comics market will do.”

To provide that quality experience, the UWS team felt it was imperative that the app perfectly synchronize with the book and, after a lengthy search, the right comic book app materialized from a small, Irish software company, Infurious Republic, the team behind Infurious Comics.

Over Skype, Rob and Philip Orr, the CEO of Infurious Republic, hammered out the details and, three prototypes later, settled on the app for Soldiers. The final result, feel the UWS team, is a digital comic experience unlike anything else currently on the market.

The navigation method for the Soldiers app is a simple tap on the far right or left sides of the screen and the word balloons can be removed to allow for better appreciation of the artwork. The reader can also quickly access "visual scrolling", a unique feature which yields fast, accurate navigation through the issue's 185 screens of content. Screen advances are quick, but subtle. The effect is a surprisingly easy and effortless read.

"Going digital required thinking a little differently," says McClellan. "There are a lot of differences between digital and print. We made Soldiers around those differences, fully accepting them and the result is a comic that feels organic to the device.

"I think it will change how people look at digital comics."

At a time when more and more books are gravitating to large Digital Comic Distributors such as iVerse and Comixology, Soldiers stands on its own. "We felt that putting the book behind an "in-app" purchasing application added another barrier for readers to get to our comic," says Rob. "Anyone can search for Soldiers in the app store, or link directly to it and share via blogs, e-mail, Twitter, and Facebook. We wanted to be able to capitalize on the impulse buy nature of digital."

Asked about his digital focused approach, Rob replied, "I realize that many feel this is a risk, but this is where we are going. A year ago video games were only played on massive systems, but now they're everywhere on the iphone. The digital comic audience is rapidly expanding and they're hungry for quality content.”

• Buy Soldiers on iTunes via this link, or search iTunes for “soldiers zero”.

Titan Launches Wallace & Gromit iPhone Comic

Britain's Titan Publishing has just launched its first digital comic for iPhone and iTouch - featuring Aardman Animations' inventors extraordinaire and Oscar winners, Wallace & Gromit.

Launched as the animated pair celebrate their 20th Anniversary, each comic is a complete Wallace & Gromit adventure and is packed with bonus features on the inveterate inventor and his faithful canine companion - and one of them is free-to-view.

“It’s really exciting to see Wallace and Gromit at the forefront of such a cracking new technology," commented Wallace & Gromit Digital Comic editor Ned Hartley, "although I secretly suspect that Wallace would be more comfortable with the type of apple that comes with cheese.”

• For more general information visit: http://titanpublishing.com/iphone/ and to keep up to date on new W&G phone releases visit this Facebook fan page


• Wallace & Gromit Comics are available from Apple’s App store now. Initially there are four comic stories to download...


• The W-Files Download now: US ($free) | UK (£free)

When strange shapes and flashing lights are seen in the night sky, there are only two paranormal investigators that can solve the problem. Sadly they aren’t available, so Wallace and Gromit might as well have a crack at it. After all, what could possibly go wrong?

• Parts & Labour Download now: US ($0.99) | UK (£0.59)


Where does he get those wonderful toys? Ever wondered where Wallace gets the parts for his eccentric, wonderful (and occasionally useful) inventions? Find out here!

• Big in Japan Download now: US ($0.99) | UK (£0.59)


Wallace and Gromit take time out to visit Wallace’s biggest fan in Japan, Hiro Worship. It turns out all is not well in the land of the rising sun, and it’s not long until Gromit has to deal with some monster problems!

• Where there’s Muck there’s Brass Download now: US ($0.99) | UK (£0.59)

Nothing gets Wallace as worked up as the disbanding of the local brass band, despite the fact that they aren’t very good, no-one wants to see them and they don’t really want to play anyway. This calls for... an invention!

Orang Utan's Alpha Gods' now on Android, iPhone

British independent comics publisher Orang Utan Comics have extended their presence on mobile phones with the arrival of its Alpha Gods title on Android, iPhone and iTouch via Robot Comics.

Written by Ian Sharman with art by Ezequiel Pineda, Alpha Gods is set in the year 2086, when humanity faces the new threat of the Extra Humans. The government is struggling to cope with the growing number of mutants, aliens and supernatural beings who are living amongst us. People are beginning to panic and so, in 2050, the Department for Extra Human Affairs was established with a remit to try and contain the problem. By 2086 the situation has escalated, so they have formed a new rapid response strike force, the Alpha Gods. Who better to police the Extra Human community than Extra Humans themselves?

A standalone Issue 0 is available free, introducing cyborg Paladin and super-powered Impact and other members of the Extra Human Department Affairs. The app offers their first mission in this exclusive prelude to the new superhero comic. Issue 1 now also available as a paid app, containing the free Issue #0 preview plus the entirety of the original Alpha Gods #1.

Alpha Gods was originally released for mobile via ROK Comics and is one of a number of comics now being delivered as part of WAP services in India on platforms designed by the same company for Airtel and other mobile networks there.

• Alpha Gods #0 is available for download now on iPhone/iPod touch


• Alpha Gods #0 is available for free in the Android Market. Scan the QR code right with your Android to receive its url.


• Alpha Gods #1 is available in the Android Market. Scan the QR code left with your Android to receive its url.<


Alternatively, search ‘Alpha Gods #0″ on the Market.

Telegraph's "Alex" on iPhone, iTouch

Celebrating the first anniversary of the Credit Crunch, Alex, the investment banker we all love to hate, whose strip adventures now appear in the Telegraph, has been brought to new life on the iPhone and iPod touch, in an "all-new" Tapisodes format.

Alex is a much-loved, occasionally hated, cartoon strip by Charles Peattie and Russell Taylor, which first appeared in the short-lived London Daily News in 1987, before moving to The Independent later that year and then to the Daily Telegraph in 1992. The strip is also collected annually.

Billed as the "first (proper) interactive mobile motion comic" for the Apple platform - a blending of comics, animation and tap interaction - 20 animated and interactive Alex strips, each themed around the market crisis, are being rolled out daily, downloaded straight into the Alex app.

“We are excited to bring a new way of experiencing comic books and animation to the world’s most trendsetting mobile platform," says Jörg Tittel of Tapisodes. "We hope to please the legions of Alex fans and introduce thousands more."

Alex - Credit Crunch Special will offer a new episode every business day from today until 23rd October, with each episode downloaded straight into the application at no additional cost. You can choose to receive a “push notification” each time a new episode is available, or browse intuitive thumbnails for downloaded, available and upcoming episodes.

Alex also comes with social networking integration, so you can do what bankers do best: tell friends about your favourite Tapisodes, all in the safety of your iPhone and out of the nosy IT department’s reach.

Alex is only the first of a series of Tapisodes mobile comics. With a patent pending on the technology, the producers have been working with other high profile brands and franchises to create new content.

“We have always embraced other entertainment mediums and therefore are very excited about the opportunities for games companies in interactive storytelling and film," explains Paul Farley, CEO of mobile game developer Tag Games.

"To be able to work with the talented team at Tapisodes on the Alex project was too good an opportunity to miss. We trust this initial collaboration will spawn many more successful titles in the future.”

Tapisodes and Tag Games were brought together through the Play Together program Creative Industry Switch created by TIGA (the trade body which represents the UK videogames industry) and NESTA (the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts). Creative Industry Switch is designed to foster communication and collaboration between the videogames industry and other UK creative industries such as film, TV, radio and animation.

“The Play Together initiatives were created to provide a forum for the UK’s creative minds to meet, exchange ideas and get commercial projects off the ground," explains Lorna Evans, Project Manager of Play Together for TIGA and NESTA. "We believe this is fundamental to the continued success of the UK’s creative industries.”

“This is exactly the sort of commercial collaboration between video games developers and other complementary media providers that we had hoped the Play Together initiative would achieve," argues Jackie McKenzie of NESTA.

• The ALEX iPhone application is available for download from the Apple iTunes App Store at a cost of £0.59, with 20 animated, interactive tapisodes gradually made available for download - straight into the app and at no extra cost. Recession proof, it does however requires the iPhone 3.0 Software Update or later.

FindComicApps Site Launched

(Crossposted from the downthetubes mobile comics blog): A new website, findcomicapps.com, offering a guide to the increasing number of digital comic applications for iPhone has been launched recently.

It's no secret that the App Store can be overwhelming and titles get buried with no way for users stay updated. The creators of this site - who, we will note straight away, seem to want to be rather anonymous, which is odd, but the sites' content is genuine and informative, hence this post - wanted to find a way to aggregate the mobile comics community into one place where consumers can go to find out what comic books are available on mobile platforms.

The website is dedicated solely to the advancement of all mobile comic applications, and the creators say they plan feature new releases every week from all developers across all platforms.

Included is a quick appraisal of every comic iphone app in a useful directory, including iVerse, Crispy Comics, Dark Horse, IDW, Robot Comics, ROK Comics and others. The guide doesn't include a link to the provider's own web sites but does have direct links to their apps and comics on the iTunes store.

The site has only just launched, but it's a handy service which with dedication is sure to grow. Check it out at: findcomicapps.com

Tube Surfing: Billy the Cat, Cradlegrave and Cla$$ War for iPhone

• Over on his brilliant site Bronze Age of Blogs, Pete Doree has posted a short article on DC Thomson's much-loved teen hero Billy the Cat, prompting artist Sean Phillips to respond with this fab drawing of William Grange in action...

• Cradlegrave, from John Smith and Edmund Bagwell, has proven to be one of the most popular stories in 2000AD for years. Over on the 2000AD Review Siet, thanks to John Smith, you can now read the script for episode 9 - so you can see how it made the transfer to the page. Warning: there are spoilers and there is bad language...

• Geek Syndicate is running a competition to win a signed copy of ComX's upcoming superhero-styled Forty-Five comic, due for release in December.
Forty-Five is a series of Superhero interviews documented by James Stanley. As a soon-to-be father, James wants to find out what lies in store for his family if his unborn child turns out to have a Superpower.
Forty-Five features Forty-Five different industry artists, all having just one page to capture the essence of each interview. More info on the Com.X web site: www.comxcomics.com

• Talking of Com.X, a company never averse to innovation, they've just announced, in collaboration with Iconology, Inc., that Com.x comics are now available for download from the iTunes store. The first wave of releases features Cla$$war #1, #2 and Path. These will be followed by the rest of the Cla$$war series and other, soon to be announced, titles.
The application is available for £0.59 or ¢99, dependent upon your location. Once you have purchased the app, which enables you to read the comics, you will be able to download Cla$$war #1 and the first chapter of Path free of charge. If you like what you see, you can then download the rest of the books for 59p/99¢ and £1.79/$2.99 for Cla$$war and Path, respectively.

• 2000AD #1646 features a new Future Shock with art by the legendary John Cooper, from a script by Mike Carroll.

• David Hine and Shaky Kane are working on a new Image comic called Bulletproof Coffin.

• Over on the BBC web site writer Mark Gatiss and radio producer Simon Hollis offer a revealing insight into their love of Doctor Who Target books, the focus of their recently-aired Radio 4 documentary, recent Radio 4 documentary, 'On The Outside It Looked Like An Old Fashioned Police Box'. They rightfully sing the praises of those with painted art covers...

• Over on the Coventry Telegraph's web site, David Bentley has an interview with Coventry-based artist and author Al Davison, who is taking Tennant's popular Time Lord to a whole new dimension. Al's new Doctor Who comic for IDW Publishing will consist of alternating two-part and four-part stories, all written by Tony Lee.
Al is drawing the two-parters while the artist on the four-part arcs ironically has the same name as the new Doctor Who, Matt Smith.

The ongoing series is launched with Al's first story arc, called Silver Scream and sees the Time Lord investigating an unearthly mystery in 1920s Hollywood.

"The first arc has already had a very good response, it's a very strong Doctor Who story," Al says. "Tony has really captured David Tennant's voice and personality: you read it and it really does sound like Tennant. Read the full interview, which covers much of Al's prestigious comics career Coventry Telegraph - The Geek Files.)

• Swindon will play host to the Swin City Comics Retro Fair on 26 September, to be held at Wharf Green. More details here on Facebook.

• After a few months concentrating on his The Spine Chillers webcomic, artist Ben Clark has moved hisMagic Beans! to a new location on Blogger. Expect the usual Clark madness to ensue in the coming days!

• Talking of web comics, Forbidden Planet International honcho Kenny Penman has been talking to Richard Cowdry and Daniel Locke recently, with the result that they’re going to be doing the new resident strip for the FPI blog. First Somersault went live recently and should be every Tuesday, just like they did with Darryl Cunningham’s Super-Sam.

• Complied with thanks to Matthew Badham

Future Shocks Re-Worked for iPhones

For the first time ever, a selection of Alan Moore’s earliest comic-strip creations Future Shocks from 2000AD are now available globally via the Apple iTunes App Store.

Alan cut his teeth writing comics for Marvel UK and on this series of ambitious and innovative short stories, and they've now been re-worked by digital comics publisher Clickwheel.net and will be available in eight parts over eight weeks.

The aim of the adaptation, says Clickwheel, is to bring Alan Moore’s Future Shocks to thousands of comic fans who have never had access to these stories before. Available now, each episode is priced at $0.99/£0.59.

“We’ve been waiting a long time to get our hands on this material," says Tim Demeter, Clickwheel’s Editor, "and as a comic fan myself, I can confidently say that if Alan Moore is one of your favourite creators, you need this!"

Quite what Alan Moore may make of this, we're unsure: there has been many a dispute between early writers on 2000AD and publishers Rebellion over reprint rights on paper, let alone iPod -- behind the scenes, Rebellion has been engaged in laying claim to all rights over material published in early issues of the comic that creators laid some ownership to for a while now to make the most of its assets. Some creators have point blank refused to sign away rights, which is why some 2000AD strips remain unreprinted.

We'd be interested to know how Clickwheel swung this deal...

• Download Alan Moore's Future Shocks from the iTunes App Store Today

ROK Comics Now on iPhone

British webcomics and mobile comics publisher and distributor ROK Comics has launched ROK Comics as an application on the Apple iPhone.

The ROK Comics application, the first of a planned series of applications currently in development by ROK for the iPhone, enables iPhone-owners to read a selection of strips from the huge and fast-growing ROK Comics portfolio, to include such strips as Anomaly (by Kennedy Rose), Crumb (by David Fletcher), Reddickulous (by David Reddick), sci-fi strip Crazy Mary (by Mike Colbert, Edward Woodward and others) and gothic comic Ligeia (by Rodrigo D. Ricci).

"We felt we should offer variety in our comics offering and this selection reflects the diversity of strips available on ROK Comics to include humour, adventure and sci-fi," ROK Comics Managing Editor John Freeman, also owner of downthetubes.net, commented. "We will constantly be evaluating, adapting and looking at new features while adding further strips in future versions of the application."

"The iPhone is having a far-reaching effect in transforming access to - and use of - mobile entertainment," added ROK's Creative Director Graham Baines, "and we at ROK are focussed on deploying ever-more interesting, engaging and easy-to-use content services and applications into this fast-growing channel".

This week, the New York Times reported that Apple sold 6.9 million iPhones in the last quarter in the US alone and has already surpassed its goal of selling 10 million iPhones during 2008, according to Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs.

"This is an exciting development for us," said ROK’s Group CEO, Laurence Alexander "and reflects our ongoing commitment to develop and deploy engaging entertainment services to mobile phones globally."

ROK Comics (www.rokcomics.com) provides comic publishers and creators to reach a worldwide audience by delivering comics to mobile phones, either by WAP subscription of Pay Per Download via Multi Media Messaging (MMS) with creators receiving up to 50% of the available revenue on every sale.

• If you already have iTunes installed on your computer, you can view the App on ITunes via: http://tinyurl.com/rokcomicsoniphone

• More information about the new application can be found at: www.rokcomics.com/iphone

Holden and Ewing's Eye Candy Project Now on Sale

Paul Holden and Al Ewing's Eye Candy comic - the world's first comic for kids for the iphone (mentioned earlier this week) - is now on sale from the Apple Store.

The first issue of the digital comic features the Masked Marshal in "Mah Pony Must be Punished!", written by Al and drawn by Paul.

"This is the Masked Marshal's return to the comics field with a full seven more panels to play with than he had before," says Al. "I do miss the old hypercompressed days when we tried to fit an entire issue into one panel - top that, Grant Morrison! - but those good times had to end and I'm glad to see all those old characters getting a new lease of life instead of rotting away in Comics Limbo with poor Awkwardman, who can't even get a guest slot in an ultra-high profile 3D comic."

Go to the iTunes store now - if this link doesn't work, look under 'Books' and 'Blue Pilot Software' - and spend just fifty-nine pence (Yes, fifty-nine pence only!) on what Al says will "likely be the future of the kids-comics industry!"

And he argues, it's either this or Dandy Extreme...

• Buy Eye Candy #1 from the Apple Store
• Comics for more than just the iphone from ROK Comics (look, I work for them, okay? It's my day job. It pays for this site!)