The DC Digital Comics Shop, will be closing on January 14th, 2021. The web-based store and online reader was popular for people who wanted to read while at work or via the web browser. Instead, you will have to download the DC Digital app for Android or iOS. Any past purchases will still be able to be read on the Comixology apps, since Comixology powered the DC Digital Comics Shop.
The closure of the online store is paving the way for the arrival of DC Universe Infinite, their new online subscription service that offers tons of digital comics to read for a monthly fee. DCUI launches on January 21st. The DC Universe is also an alternative, but only available for US members. It has thousands of television shows, movies and comics that have been upscaled to 4k. Last year, Marvel also closed their online store and web reader, and forced everyone to use their apps.
I don’t think the industry trend of closing cloud based readers and their online stores is not a good trend. Many other companies have been scaling back their efforts in this space, including the Kindle Cloud Reader on the verge of being totally discontinued. This is alienating people who can’t use phones or tablets at school or at work and can only use the browser to access content.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
