DDP Leaves Diamond; Accuses Distributor Of Malfeasance In Fees, Costs

Graeme McMillan has an interview up with Devil's Due Publishing President Josh Blaylock that attempts to unpack the logic behind their leaving an exclusive agreement with Direct Market distributing giant Diamond. It's kind of a mish-mash of answers and assertions and justifications, but what Blaylock seems to be saying is that Diamond is withholding money to pay down old Devil's Due fees and returns costs and that 1) Devil's Due disputes the extent and origin of such charges, strongly alluding to Diamond warehouse mismanagement and 2) paying these fees and costs is smothering the company cash-wise to the extent Blaylock feels justified in going to a system of direct-to-store sales and working with competing distribution company Haven in order to free up the cash necessary to operate the company and pay talent. He terms what Diamond is doing as a garnishment, although I think that would be a garnishment only if Diamond somehow got the money that Devil's Due was getting from an outside source, like their Haven money or a personal source of income.

This is weird news all around, and the fact that no one will talk exact figures with this kind of story kind of spins the whole thing off into a world of competing not-pristine reputations and broad allusions of general malfeasance that maybe couldn't be proved with a time machine. I think there are two keys. The first key is whether or not the fees Diamond has been charging are legitimate; but since DDP has essentially walked up and left the room rather than challenging those payments within Diamond's framework, we may only find out whether these were reflective of actual returns or the alluded-to fruits of warehouse incompetence if there is further legal action on Diamond's part to recoup that money. The second key is whether or not a strategy of direct store sales and working with a smaller distributor gives DDP any chance at all in making enough money to pay freelancers and absorbing any additional costs that may come their way -- or return their way if, say, Diamond presses their claim. My hunch is probably not, although merely keeping the company alive long enough for a white knight to appear might be a way out of things as well. I'm always a little disturbed when I hear about past expected business success being necessary to keep current business operations going, because I think that sidesteps the obligations of the publisher to provide or have access to a reserve of capital, but it's not like that's a rare thing in comics, either.
 
posted 8:00 am PST | Permalink
 

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