TokyoPop Splits Company, Lays Off Staff, Cuts Manga Roster

Los Angeles-based manga publisher TokyoPop has had a tumultuous week. First came the furor over TokyoPop's Manga Pilot project, which artists and bloggers tore to shreds, because the contract they were offering to creators was seen as "appalling," "draconian" and "crappy".

Then Publisher's Weekly comics maven Heidi McDonald hinted at trouble brewing at T-Pop after hearing some buzz at last weekend's Book Expo America. And today came news that TokyoPop is splitting into two companies: TOKYOPOP Media LLC, which will handle its "comics-to-film and digital units" and TOKYOPOP, which will focus on manga publishing.

According to the press release posted on Anime News Network,

As part of the spin-off and reorganization, 39 positions within the organization have been eliminated. The move will allow the company to align its publishing business with current book retail trends, as well as aggressively pursue growth in the white-hot comics-to-film and digital space.

TokyoPop CEO Stuart Levy is quoted in the release, and while he says that he's making this move "with a heavy heart," he also rationalizes the change as part of TokyoPop's evolution:

"The time is now for us to focus our publishing business to overcome current market challenges. Fewer releases will allow for less cannibalization at retail. At the same time, the opportunity is significant in the digital and comics-to-film space. As one of the largest comic book companies worldwide, we must adjust our overhead to properly execute this new business plan."

What's the bottom line for manga readers? According to the article on ANN, "Tokyopop Inc. will be scaling back its publishing activities, from about 470 volumes a year to 225-240 volumes a year". Does this mean that TokyoPop will be cancelling slower-selling manga titles, scaling back on new titles? No one really knows right now, but newly-unemployed, former TokyoPop translator Peter Ahlstrom floats out a few theories on which titles are safe, and which ones might be first to go if the axe comes down.

Needless to say,the blogosphere is a-blaze with reactions, comments and theories about what this change means. I have mixed feelings about the whole thing. My heart goes out to the TokyoPop employees are now looking for other avenues for their talents, but I have to agree that TP's publishing roster is huge and was probably unsustainable as the competition for bookstore shelf space gets tighter. But is focusing on movies and mobile phone manga really the way to go here? Time will tell if TokyoPop is making the most brilliant or its most misguided move in its 12-year history. But in the meantime, what do you think? Add your comments below or in the forums.

Image credit: © TOKYOPOP LLC