Kodansha USA Shifting Its Manga Release Schedule
If you’ve been paying attention to the news, you know that it’s become a lot more difficult to sell certain products…not only because purchasing them would require a lot of people to congregate in one small area, but because most of the bookstores across the US have been closed for this reason.
In accordance with this, comic publishers have begun announcing delays for most of their popular titles. Manga publisher Kodansha has just announced it’s also falling in line with this practice. The on sale print dates for many of its spring and summer 2020 print titles will now be shifted to later in the year.
“We’re very, very lucky to be working with incredibly resilient and resourceful retail partners and our fantastic distribution partner at Penguin Random House, who are stepping up and keeping the essential lifeline of books open during an unprecedented disruption to our day-to-day business,” said Alvin Lu, Kodansha USA Publishing President and CEO. ‘Getting manga to readers is the top and only priority for us at Kodansha USA Publishing, which we will continue to do during this extraordinary time.”
However, the dates will NOT be shifted for digital versions of Kodansha Comics titles, in an effort to keep people reading at home. That’s all well and good, but when this crisis finally lets up, don’t forget to support your local comics shop by buying physical! (In fact, you may be able to buy from them right now…check their social media pages for any possible delivery offers.)