DC Universe official streaming service details

[BatmanJones]

I think DC would be wise to market especially to DC fans with the triple-punch of classic TV/movie/animated content, new TV content, and especially the comic catalogue.

I know a lot of DC fans that aren't subscribers and are surprised when I describe the comics library to them.

It feels more like they're marketing a streaming service with not all that much new content and I'm not sure that's their best argument.

On classic/old TV/movie content: It's a shame they launched at a time they weren't clear to include modern DC movies/CW stuff (even if it's pretty bland) because of pre-existing contracts with other streaming services/channels/etc. If they were able to sell DCU as a clearinghouse for ALL DC content, I think they'd improve their numbers by magnitudes. (It might have been worth waiting as a business model but DC doesn't tend to wait about anything but Doomsday Clock. It's all about chasing the next new idea without a lot of forethought. See: The New 52.)

On new TV/animated content: Even though we've gotten about one new episode a week since the launch of DCU, I feel like an episode a week has a feeling of slightness. I think the service might be more attractive if it follows the Netflix/Amazon/Hulu model of dropping a season at a time for binging purposes. I can think of one good reason they aren't doing this and that's that people might be more likely to do free trials or one-month subscriptions and then cancel. I think that might be shortsighted. If they could capture more free trial/one-month subscribers they might well win a lot of converts with their comics library.

On the comics library: I can't say enough about how great it is. I used to trade wait some books and pay about $15 to get ONE collected arc. I'll still always buy a lot of comics the day they hit the stands but there are SO many comics I'm willing to wait a year for, knowing they'll ALL be available for around $8 a month before too terribly long.

Doom Patrol is tied for my favorite live-action DC anything of all time (nothing can ever surpass Batman 66 for me so a tie is a really high compliment on my part) but, to me, it's the comics that are an unbelievable value.

Every time I see a thread here about great stories I missed or am reminded of great stories I haven't read in a long time, I go straight to DCU and read them. I don't have to dig out my floppies. I don't have to wait for a comixology sale. Almost every great DC story I'd ever want to read is only a search away on DCU. I love it as a streaming service of great, new content but I REALLY love it as a DC comics library.

[hareluyafan1]

I think there is a chance for Swamp Thing to go to Netflix overseas.
DC Universe may be optioning their series to Netflix for the global audience.

We won't know for sure unless Doom Patrol gets released on Netflix.

Thanks. I really appreciate that.

Guess we'll just have to wait and hope for the best.

[Last Son of Krypton]

Is "Geeks Worldwide" a reputable site? I don't see anyone else making the claim that WB wants more CW-style shows (and I love the CW shows, don't get me wrong, but surely WB is also capable of making Doom Patrols and Swamp Things.)

It is. The article above was written by Thomas Polito, he was the first to broke the story of the show cancellation. The inside infos about the show's "downfall" come from the same source.

[comicstar100]

On the comics library: I can't say enough about how great it is. I used to trade wait some books and pay about $15 to get ONE collected arc. I'll still always buy a lot of comics the day they hit the stands but there are SO many comics I'm willing to wait a year for, knowing they'll ALL be available for around $8 a month before too terribly long.

Doom Patrol is tied for my favorite live-action DC anything of all time (nothing can ever surpass Batman 66 for me so a tie is a really high compliment on my part) but, to me, it's the comics that are an unbelievable value.

Every time I see a thread here about great stories I missed or am reminded of great stories I haven't read in a long time, I go straight to DCU and read them. I don't have to dig out my floppies. I don't have to wait for a comixology sale. Almost every great DC story I'd ever want to read is only a search away on DCU. I love it as a streaming service of great, new content but I REALLY love it as a DC comics library.

Completely agree about the comics library. I think they are missing the mark, They are advertising it as a tv/movie streaming service with a few comics. It needs to be repackaged as a comic streaming app with some tv/movies. Every DC fan should have it for the comics digital library alone. I love Doom Patrol and Young Justice but if all the media was gone and it just focused on comics I would still say its worth the subscription.

[Agent Z]

Report: Swamp Thing Could Have Run for 3 Seasons and Led to a Justice League: Dark Spinoff

In a new report from Business Insider, several sources who claim to have been close to Swamp Thing’s production describe an overall sense of hopefulness on the set that led many to believe it was destined for success. One Swamp Thing producer described the cancellation as a shock that came entirely out of left field, and said that part of the reason it threw everyone for such a loop was that the show was very much still in production when the word came down.

The producer claims that Swamp Thing’s sets were still standing when the show was officially axed, and you may remember earlier reports that the first (and now only) season was shortened from 13 to 10 episodes during production. Executive producer James Wan did share a few thoughts on Instagram which echoed the surprise aspect of the news.

But what’s really interesting are Business Insider’s reported details of what might have been:

One source close to the production told Business Insider that the show had a possible three-season arc, and the feeling on set was that it could have gone past that if it was a hit, with characters spinning off into their own shows. The source used the specific example of a potential Justice League Dark team-up series.

The unnamed producer also added that while the public might be in the dark about whatever discussions were had about Swamp Thing’s budget, WB was perfectly clear on how much the show was going to cost and how much North Carolina was going to commit in the form of tax rebates.

https://io9.gizmodo.com/report-swamp...-le-1835409277

[Lee Stone]

Report: Swamp Thing Could Have Run for 3 Seasons and Led to a Justice League: Dark Spinoff

https://io9.gizmodo.com/report-swamp...-le-1835409277

I think the 'unnamed producer' was probably trying to justify the cost and may be trying to vilify WB.
It doesn't take much these days to start an internet mob.

And saying it could've ran for three seasons and spun out a JLDark series is just what fans want to hear. There's no guarantee that if it had a second season that there would've been a third or even a JLDark.
Sounds to me someone's trying to stir the pot.

They should just let it go and move on. WB made their decision.
For whatever reason, it's not what they want to spend $8.5 million per episode on.
It's not like they weren't paid for their work. That would be a different story.

[skyvolt2000]

So more shows like the CW ones!??!! And less shows like Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing? Wtf is going on with that executives! That's a terrible direction to go in! Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing are so so so much better than any of the best seasons the CW shows have to offer! I will be extremely pissed off if this is indeed true! I hate the CW shows and love the DCU shows...

It's called ad revenue. So you can do more with less on a network show versus a stream show.

Remember you have to edit stuff out to fit in commercials.

Also you are under a different set of rules for a network show.

[skyvolt2000]

I think DC would be wise to market especially to DC fans with the triple-punch of classic TV/movie/animated content, new TV content, and especially the comic catalogue.

I know a lot of DC fans that aren't subscribers and are surprised when I describe the comics library to them.

It feels more like they're marketing a streaming service with not all that much new content and I'm not sure that's their best argument.

On classic/old TV/movie content: It's a shame they launched at a time they weren't clear to include modern DC movies/CW stuff (even if it's pretty bland) because of pre-existing contracts with other streaming services/channels/etc. If they were able to sell DCU as a clearinghouse for ALL DC content, I think they'd improve their numbers by magnitudes. (It might have been worth waiting as a business model but DC doesn't tend to wait about anything but Doomsday Clock. It's all about chasing the next new idea without a lot of forethought. See: The New 52.)

On the comics library: I can't say enough about how great it is. I used to trade wait some books and pay about $15 to get ONE collected arc. I'll still always buy a lot of comics the day they hit the stands but there are SO many comics I'm willing to wait a year for, knowing they'll ALL be available for around $8 a month before too terribly long.

Doom Patrol is tied for my favorite live-action DC anything of all time (nothing can ever surpass Batman 66 for me so a tie is a really high compliment on my part) but, to me, it's the comics that are an unbelievable value.

Every time I see a thread here about great stories I missed or am reminded of great stories I haven't read in a long time, I go straight to DCU and read them. I don't have to dig out my floppies. I don't have to wait for a comixology sale. Almost every great DC story I'd ever want to read is only a search away on DCU. I love it as a streaming service of great, new content but I REALLY love it as a DC comics library.

The comic book stuff is not costing them like the shows. Remember a LOT of that comic stuff is available in bins and libraries.

And if you are a fan of certain characters-like John Stewart-you probably already got all his best stuff in your collection. That app is pointless to you. Same if you like Milestone & Vertigo. You have no incentive to bother.

Now if they were to offer stream exclusive comics that will not SNIFF a trade for say a full year. Now you got a better reason especially if you do guys like Ted Kord, Huntress and so on.

[Rac7d*]

It's called ad revenue. So you can do more with less on a network show versus a stream show.

Remember you have to edit stuff out to fit in commercials.

Also you are under a different set of rules for a network show.

[Frontier]

Report: Swamp Thing Could Have Run for 3 Seasons and Led to a Justice League: Dark Spinoff





https://io9.gizmodo.com/report-swamp...-le-1835409277

That's...very ambitious for an untested IP on a new streaming service.

[Lee Stone]

A few more details about Swamp Thing's cancellation, from The Hollywood Reporter:
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/li...ystery-1217592

"Despite promising reviews, insiders believed that they had a dud on their hands and, rather than pull the plug on the show and lose millions already invested with nothing to show for it — like Fox and Hieroglyph — the studio opted instead to complete work on the series and use it to bolster the library content on the DC Universe platform that serves as a value-add to its massive digital comic book library."

"Sources say the timing of the cancellation was spurred by the studio's decision to bypass paying millions to store the show's physical sets in North Carolina. That decision led to the cancellation leak. Contrary to some early unconfirmed reports, tax incentives had nothing to do with the sudden cancellation as Swamp Thing was awarded $5 million in incentives for the pilot and an additional $12 million for the remainder of the season."

[Immortal Weapon]

So more shows like the CW ones!??!! And less shows like Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing? Wtf is going on with that executives! That's a terrible direction to go in! Doom Patrol and Swamp Thing are so so so much better than any of the best seasons the CW shows have to offer! I will be extremely pissed off if this is indeed true! I hate the CW shows and love the DCU shows...

Sounds like the executives want crappy popcorn shows then thought provoking TV.

[Lee Stone]

More reading...

Justice League of America (1960) #186
And this is how you deal with a Doomsday level villain without anyone really dying.
I enjoyed seeing Ralph enjoying a mystery book and Dinah standing up to Ollie for her decision to stay with the League.
I was also glad to see Ollie respect that.
I thought it was humorous that the pictures of Shaggy Man in the folder were obviously images of the soldiers being repeatedly defeated while the captions painted things much differently.
Overall, an entertaining read.

[numberthirty]

I think DC would be wise to market especially to DC fans with the triple-punch of classic TV/movie/animated content, new TV content, and especially the comic catalogue.

I know a lot of DC fans that aren't subscribers and are surprised when I describe the comics library to them.

It feels more like they're marketing a streaming service with not all that much new content and I'm not sure that's their best argument.

On classic/old TV/movie content: It's a shame they launched at a time they weren't clear to include modern DC movies/CW stuff (even if it's pretty bland) because of pre-existing contracts with other streaming services/channels/etc. If they were able to sell DCU as a clearinghouse for ALL DC content, I think they'd improve their numbers by magnitudes. (It might have been worth waiting as a business model but DC doesn't tend to wait about anything but Doomsday Clock. It's all about chasing the next new idea without a lot of forethought. See: The New 52.)

On new TV/animated content: Even though we've gotten about one new episode a week since the launch of DCU, I feel like an episode a week has a feeling of slightness. I think the service might be more attractive if it follows the Netflix/Amazon/Hulu model of dropping a season at a time for binging purposes. I can think of one good reason they aren't doing this and that's that people might be more likely to do free trials or one-month subscriptions and then cancel. I think that might be shortsighted. If they could capture more free trial/one-month subscribers they might well win a lot of converts with their comics library.

On the comics library: I can't say enough about how great it is. I used to trade wait some books and pay about $15 to get ONE collected arc. I'll still always buy a lot of comics the day they hit the stands but there are SO many comics I'm willing to wait a year for, knowing they'll ALL be available for around $8 a month before too terribly long.

Doom Patrol is tied for my favorite live-action DC anything of all time (nothing can ever surpass Batman 66 for me so a tie is a really high compliment on my part) but, to me, it's the comics that are an unbelievable value.

Every time I see a thread here about great stories I missed or am reminded of great stories I haven't read in a long time, I go straight to DCU and read them. I don't have to dig out my floppies. I don't have to wait for a comixology sale. Almost every great DC story I'd ever want to read is only a search away on DCU. I love it as a streaming service of great, new content but I REALLY love it as a DC comics library.

Along this line...

Back when Marvel Unlimited was a new thing, two friends(friends who had never met each other, mind you) asked me if I knew anything about Marvel Unlimited and went into what they thought the strengths of the platform were.

Got to say, I have yet to hear anything like that about DC Universe. Outside of discussion here, it's been all "Crickets..." While DC has put money into commercials for the shows that make up the streaming service, I don't think that there have been any commercials based on the "Comic Library..." component of the service.

That reality is kind of mind blowing. It is what they should be touting.

[Lee Stone]

Along this line...

Back when Marvel Unlimited was a new thing, two friends(friends who had never met each other, mind you) asked me if I knew anything about Marvel Unlimited and went into what they thought the strengths of the platform were.

Got to say, I have yet to hear anything like that about DC Universe. Outside of discussion here, it's been all "Crickets..." While DC has put money into commercials for the shows that make up the streaming service, I don't think that there have been any commercials based on the "Comic Library..." component of the service.

That reality is kind of mind blowing. It is what they should be touting.

I agree.

There's two audiences:
Audience A, on the left, that watches Netflix, Hulu and loves the MCU or DCEU films.
Audience B, on the right, that reads comics but desires a Marvel Unlimited type service.

DC: "Hey Audience A! You like super-hero shows and movies? Now you can subscribe to DC Universe and watch all your favorite characters! And look! We revived Young Justice and Titans!"

Audience A arrives, excited.
And then gets disappointed because everything they know of DC isn't on there. They don't read the comics, so they don't know the Doom Patrol. And Swamp Thing, for all they know, was a campy movie in the '80s.
Thus begins the "Where are the CW shows?", "Where are the DCEU films?", "Where are the Nolan Batman movies?", "Where's the 1966 Batman show?"

Meanwhile, a near-full library of comics gets added to the service, to appease Audience A, most of which Do Not Read Comics.

Audience B, however, doesn't find out about the comics except by word of mouth while news media sources are touting the demise of the service based on rumors and speculations.

This could've been handled so much better.
I think there were too many cooks in the kitchen and no one gave a serious consideration to subscriber expectations vs what they actually could supply.
Somehow they really expected the DC Universe service to get by as just an outlet for shows the networks wouldn't pick up or renew. That was it.
There really was no intention of it being anything more.

That mismatch of what they wanted the service to be and what subscribers expected the service to be has really caused it to hit a snag.
They cannot satisfy Audience A. There is no way they can. Because WB has already licensed most of the content they want to see to other services.
They need to realize that they cannot be what Audience A wants, and that they still can be what Audience B wants.
If they just acknowledge Audience B.