ZCult FM Torrent Site Down- No more Comics Downloads!
Marvel and DC have just done their best Scarlet Witch House of M impression.
As of approximately 36 hours ago, the popular comic book only torrent site, ZCult FM, has stopped serving torrents. According to posts made on ZCult’s forums by site-runner “Serj,” the site received a cease and desist letter from both Marvel and DC, indicating some cooperation between the two to get this site taken down. He has been able to confirm the authenticity of the DC letter, but has not directly spoken to anyone from Marvel yet.
This comes hot on the heels of several relevant events. Most prominently, Marvel has launched Digital Comics Unlimited, their new online initiative that offers thousands of books up for reading under a monthly subscription fee. This service does not appeal to existing readers of digital downloads, however, due to the format, layout, and the fact you don’t actually download them, you just stream them.
In addition, another popular torrent site, Demonoid, was recently shut down. Whether or not this was due in anyway to their hosting of Comic torrents is undisclosed. They hosted a multitude of other kinds, including software for Macintosh and Windows PCs.
DC’s online presence, in the form of their existing IP, is thus far nil, and it’s yet to be seen if they have plans similar to Marvel’s in store. They have, however, been recently offering collections of more rare and hard-to-find books. This includes the just announced Starman by Robinson and Harris, which is finally getting a proper Hardcover treatment.
This shut down of ZCult is a big blow to readers of downloaded comics, but it is far from the only site on the internet that hosts them. People will be able to find other places if this one is in fact shut down. What’s different about ZCult from most is the online community that has formed there. Some of the most active, and intelligently debated, forums on the comic ‘net can be found in their message board section. Add to that reviews, a podcast, and weekly previews, and you have a full on comic site being run by no one actively involved in the industry, except as fans. According to Serj, Marvel’s demands included the complete shut-down of the site, including these community features. This seems odd, and really, a little vindictive to many involved with the site.
The community backlash has been fervent. There is an entire thread devoted to users posting specific titles on their pull lists, which is a list with a comic store of comics they want to buy every month, that they started getting because they read them first in a pack downloaded through torrents. The collector mentality seems very prevalent, as when these posters like a book they downloaded and read, they then decide to go buy the collections or begin getting the monthly. For most comic book fans, there’s nothing like having that book in your hands, and in that way many users of this site and others are using it more like a library- a place to try a new book risk free.
One interesting twist in this post back is the involvement of an as-yet-unnamed indie publisher. Serj has long been accommodating to the small press. If a representative of a small press company, or even an individual creator, writes him an e-mail asking him not to host torrents with their work involved, he simply adds it to the banned list, and will personally take down any torrents that include those files. Recently, he reports, one company from the banned list rescinded their ban and even asked if they could form some sort of partnership, including cross-advertising. If nothing else, we may be getting a peek at the future of ZCult right there. Independent Publishers may thrive from getting the additional exposure a large community like this can give them.
Does the torrent download community really impact sales one way or the other? That’s a debate for another column (and one I very well may write soon). We’ll have all the up to date information for you about ZCult and the comics download industry as it develops here and over at our friends Newsarama.
November 22nd, 2007 at 5:55 pm
Bastards.
Where are we moving to now?
November 22nd, 2007 at 7:06 pm
Tsssss, as if they can stop P2P comic distribution. The record companies still have no hold whatsoever over P2P music distribution, and neither has the movie industry over P2P movies. The games industry is powerless against the removal of copy protection, and the software industry can’t make a dent in the use of illegal programs. So what does Marvel (and supposedly DC) think it can do? NOTHING!!! Even without the ZCult tracker I’ve found my weekly comic packs at various torrent sites at that! The only thing that changes is that I’ll never buy another Marvel or DC comic ever again, except when it’s in the bargain bin. And I’m not the only one…
November 22nd, 2007 at 10:38 pm
Feh, like you really need torrents for that. Use IRC.
November 23rd, 2007 at 12:35 am
> Where are we moving to now?
To the headquarters of Marvel. We have to make a stand! THIS ENDS HERE AND NOW!!!
erm, no idea…pb?
November 24th, 2007 at 2:48 am
Well…I’ll tell you…I started doing the occasional download to make review deadlines (well, Troy would say blow them by up to 12 hours, but that’s splitting hairs). They did lead me, occasionally, to think about dropping titles that I realized I was only reading just to be up on the minutiae of the DC or Marvel universe. I wasn’t enjoying the stories so much, but had that crack-like addiction to knowing what was up.
In that case, DC and Marvel would have been losing my money. Chances are, though, that they were on the road to losing that money anyway. Still…who knows if/when I’d come to the conclusion to drop without the aid of torrents?
For the record, I only downloaded torrents of books that I had shipping to me from DCBService. Holiday shipping schedules lead to my books getting in on Monday, rather than Friday…making participation in BEST SHOTS impossible without a download.
November 27th, 2007 at 2:00 am
I don’t think it’s any secret that I obviously read downloaded books, since it would be impossible for me to receive my books in time for my column to be posted on the following next week.
They aren’t losing my money either, both because I do read lots of titles just to keep up, like Kevin said, and because even if I could my books on time, I wouldn’t be able to afford the cost of importing them down here.
Even if I lived in the US, I’d buy a third of what I download, then download them anyway for archiving/reviewing process, and download those I wouldn’t buy unless I had money to blow.
November 27th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
If everybody that said “I read the scans, but also buy the comic later on” was telling the truth, Marvel really wouldn’t have taken this kind of action. It’s a lot of hot air, justifiying the downloading of illegal comics. Since I started downloading comics, I never bought a single issue ever again. And they won’t, ever again. I won’t even encourage my children to do so anymore.
The removal of Marvel comics from the Z-Cult FM site (YES, that’s what happened in the end, no legal action or nothing) blew (see previous comment), but it also made me think about stuff. Do I really need comics anymore? Do I need the mediocre child-like stories Marvel (and DC and such) puts out every week? The same lame stories and heroes of which some existed 50 years ago? The answer was no. I’ve got a life now. I don’t need comics anymore. Thanks Marvel for showing me that they are just making childrens entertainment!
November 27th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
That’s an…interesting point of view, MS. Me, I plan on continuing to enjoy the 30+ Marvel comic books I buy that are on my pull list every month, along with the DC team books (easiest way to get as many characters as possible on a limited budget!). Whether or not comics are out there for easy download, it doesn’t change the fact that comics are a fun hobby for me. But hey, to each their own.
December 2nd, 2007 at 6:04 am
Consider my Point of View
Alright, I have read the posts and just as I’ve replied in almost every single posts is that z-cultfm is the ONLY way I can get comics. I live in a developing country and I dont mean to brag but buying the comics is peachy keen with me AS LONG AS THEY ARE AVAILABLE!
I love comics and if DC and or Marvel would be so kind to maybe export their comics to South East Asia?
Then again if they truly cut me off from comics, its their loss, they have lost a major single spender in the comics industry.
December 10th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
Feh, I’m a regular comics-buyer, but I happen to be travelling in a part of the world that doesn’t have regular comic book stores and all I’ve been able to find to buy are Spanish-language trades…so for the first time I’ve delved into the world of downloading comics (plus a friend is picking up paper copies for me for when I get back home) and now Marvel pull something like this?
What a pain in the arse.