Huge Japanese publisher Kodansha sets-up shop in the US
Paul •
As the Western manga industry further establishes itself with consumers, more and more Japanese publishers are taking a firmer grip with their international sales. The latest manga label to be announced is Kodansha USA, which began operations on July 1 with $2 million to spend. According to Wikipedia, Kodansha is the largest publisher in Japan, with many of their past manga series already published in the US by Del Rey and in the UK by Tanoshimi, including the likes of Negima, Tsubasa: RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE and Basilisk. Therefore, this news immediately brings into question the future of the likes of Del Rey, as almost their entire output consists of Kodansha’s manga, and as Kodansha are themselves setting up a publishing office in the US, it seems unlikely that they will continue to sell-off their most popular titles to their now rivals.
