Viz Media, North America’s largest manga distributor, unveiled a brand new app, Viz Manga, which homes English variations of common Japanese manga from Shogakukan and Shueisha. The launch marks the primary time English translations shall be accessible concurrently with Japanese editions from these publishers on a digital platform. And followers can entry them for simply $2 a month.
Viz goals to create a handy possibility to fulfill demand in North America, the place generally the wait is so long as two years for a manga sequence to be launched in English. The transfer may also assist curb piracy and guarantee authors and creators obtain correct credit score. Unlawful “scanlations” have turn into prevalent and created a marketplace for impatient followers in search of unofficial translations of their favourite manga. Whereas Viz will kick off the app’s launch with works from Shogakukan and Shueisha, readers can rely on seeing titles from different publishing homes sooner or later.
Subscribers can comb by way of greater than 10,000 chapters on the app, which is obtainable for Android and iOS. Viz Manga has 15 titles which might be being supplied in English for the primary time, together with the newest releases from Rumiko Takahashi, Haro Aso and Tomohito Oda. As a perk, the newest three chapters of those 15 works shall be accessible at no cost.
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Viz Media
Manga followers also can faucet into Yashahime: Princess Half Demon and titles from creators like Junji Ito, Inio Asano, Arina Tanemura and Taiyō Matsumoto. This is an instance of what you will discover within the Viz Manga library:
Zom 100: Bucket Record of the DeadMaoCase ClosedInsomniacs After SchoolKomi Cannot CommunicateBlack LagoonGYOPersona 5Fly Me to the MoonSleepy Princess within the Demon Fortress
Viz plans to launch weekly chapters from every writer similtaneously they seem in Japan, permitting subscribers to select from numerous genres like fantasy, college life, comedy, horror, LGBTQ and drama. Customers have the power to mark their favorites, obtain titles, make purchases and sync content material throughout a number of units.
A take a look at the options that Viz Manga presents.
Viz Media
This is not the corporate’s first entry into the app world. A earlier iteration of a Viz manga app enabled customers to purchase particular person volumes, whereas this new model will get subscribers entry to the entire library — for a single worth. Viz Media additionally owns the Shonen Bounce app, and the mixed catalog between each providers presently quantities to round 25,000 chapters, with extra to return.
For followers of manga “streaming,” Viz Manga’s digital library may be an interesting possibility in a market the place persons are longing for English translations. Its greatest rivals proper now are Crunchyroll’s digital manga service and Kodansha’s upcoming English-language platform, Ok Manga.