With the release of the iPhone 3G version the door has been opened to a whole new world of digital content. The slow speeds of previous mobile networks have made it difficult for content providers to get into high end content such is streaming video or video chat applications. Now, because of the speed of 3G, all of that is certainly going to change. According to Wikipedia, "it is expected that IMT-2000 will provide higher transmission rates: a minimum speed of 2Mbit/s for stationary or walking users, and 348 kbit/s in a moving vehicle", [1] the ITU does not actually clearly specify minimum or average speeds or what modes of the interfaces qualify as 3G, so various speeds are sold as 3G intended to meet customers expectations of broadband speed." The article continues to say that the current EDGE network, used on iPhone is part of the 3G standards, but as an end user, I can assure you I don't get anywhere near those speeds.



In Japan, Softbank, the country's third largest mobile provider, has the rights to sell the iPhone 3G. There's been no word on whether or not this is an exclusive deal or not, but they will apparently be selling the iPhone later this year. Now, I've heard stories that commuters on trains are already watching live broadcasts and high quality streaming video on their handsets. If the 3G rates mentioned above hold true, this is easily understood. The near-DVD quality of video found on iTunes would stream over the stationary rates quoted above, and as you can imagine the small screens on hand sets wouldn't need even a quarter of that screen size or data rate, making full motion video a realm to watch for digital content creators eyeing the mobile market.

I know that I personally have been eyeing mobile content for some time, though it may not be the ideal venue for the types of shows I want to do. Before this site, I was always found holding a Sony PSP and had intended to create comics and graphic novels for that amazing screen. Now I am enamored with creating the same for the iPhone. It's touch screen seems ideal for it. If I could produce animation fast enough, I might even consider that, and with the 3G handset, the streaming of said animation would actually be possible. I see a future with huge potential and I, for one, can't wait to see what kind of amazing products come out for it.

Tags: Mobile Content, iPhone, TV, Japan, Pop Culture

iPhone Alchemy announces the MAYDAY SALE! Throughout the month of May, all iPhone Alchemy comics are only 25 cents. That's right, all comic titles cレアcreated by iPhone alchemy, and any releases of original content, created by us, throughout the month will be only a quarter. That's a deal you can't beat anywhere.

Speaking of new releases, look for an all new series premiering on the Alchemy Manga Reader this month, along with other new titles in the store. It's time for IPhone Alchemy to skyrocket!

Tags: iPhone, Manga, Mobile Content

The Alchemy Manga Reader webapp for iPhone and iPod Touch has been updated to feature a new Javascript interface for navigating through manga pages. This means that it is not only easier to move through the manga posted there, but it is easier ad faster to put manga on there. What does this mean for readers? More content!

With the ability to easily and quickly add manga to the webapp, you can expect that new titles and longer, more involved stories can begin appearing very soon. Also be on the look out for more artists, even those in Japan, joining in the iPhone Manga goodness and creating work that will light up your iPhone screen with great stories, characters and worlds. The iPhone is flooding the world and quickly becoming the number one mobile device of choice with global users. The Japan launch will be huge, I think, and will open new worlds to just how big iPhone manga can get.

Feel free to use your iPhone or iPod Touch to pay a visit to http://mobile.iphonealchemy.com and check out the latest revision of the Alchemy Manga Reader. And by all means, let me know what you think!

Tags: Manga, Mobile Content, iPhone

The Alchemy Manga Reader, a project I have looked forward to for a long time, has officially gone live. If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch, you can navigate to http://mobile.iphonealchemy.com and see for yourself. You do have to have an iPhone or iPod Touch though as this is a mobile website. It may work on other devices like Sony PSP or Nintendo DS, but I haven't tested this yet. It is primarily made for the iPhone and iPod Touch.

So what is it? Well, basically it is a web app that lets you navigate to the iPhone Alchemy manga right on your handset. This is the one source for exclusive, full color manga and comics made specifically for the IPhone screen. You won't find print manga chopped up and reformatted for mobile viewing here. Mobile manga is a fast growing phenomenon and the Alchemy Manga Reader puts you at the front lines with updates every week, previews of upcoming titles, wallpaper packs, ringtone samples and possible even video. (Anigen on the iPhone anyone?)

If you have an iPhone or iPod touch, navigate over to mobile.iphonealchemy.com and check it out for yourself. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. And make sure to bookmark it because a new alchemy manga series is going to start right there very soon. There will also be a Japanese version in the very near future. Things are just getting started!

Tags: iPhone, Manga, Mobile Content

The writer's strike may have put a dent in some of my favorite iPhone sponsored TV shows like Moonlight and Chuck, but it's not stopping me from writing new iPhone manga. I forgot to mention that my latest release Blood Isle is up and available in the Alchemy Manga Shop, joining the recent Evidemic released last week. Blood Isle is a story I like to call a fantasy with a twist you won't believe. It follows an axe-wielding barbarian woman called Ozelle as she moves through the battles waging around her on this island. This is just the beginning of an iPhone manga series I am very excited about and so expect to see a lot more of this story as it develops. The twist in question will become more apparent in the next chapter and things really explode from there!

It was a fun title to work on as I chose to experiment with the look and feel of the piece, deviating from the sharp look of the previous titles to try something more painterly and earthy. I enjoyed playing with colors, foggy settings and depth in the scenes. Because the world of iPhone manga allows for a blend of techniques from print and screen graphics, there are a lot of interesting directions to go artistically. I am sure I wll discover and expand on this as time goes on.

Coming up this month, in time for the holidays, will be a new CG collection titled Manga Dolls: Holiday Wallpaper Pack. It will provide a way to give some sexy holiday cheer to your iPhone with some different holiday backgrounds. The CG collection will contain 16 beautiful background images featuring the cutest characters around in holiday themed environments. This will be the first of many seasonal CG collections to supplement the iPhone manga available in the store. CG collections are extremely popular in the digital manga world of Japan, and as more artist create content for iPhone Alchemy, I hope to have some image collections from some of the greats overseas in the store very soon.

Even though I'll be after great iPhone formatted manga content from a variety of artists in Japan and globally, that won't stop the development of my original stories. Look forward to the next chapter of Heaven's Burden, coming later this month, along with continuing stories of Evidemic and eventually, The Legend of Zahur. Also, the web app I mentioned previously is underway for the iPhone and should be showing up in the next couple of weeks. I feel like I'm on a roll now and I am having a ton of fun. Things are just beginning to accelerate!

Tags: Blood Isle, Mobile Content, Manga

Mobile manga is already a huge industry in Japan, servicing the nearly 80 million mobile users to be found there. This is only the beginning. Mobile networks are growing globally and users are ever joining the expanding mobile universe. In fact, some see mobile content as the future of many forms of entertainment.

In Japan where manga and doujinshi (usually amateur, self published comic works) are huge, the mobile content market has opened entirely new doors of liberation. First, there's the elimination of printing costs, a serious obstacle for the indie artist. This also opens the door to full color works. Second, the issue of distribution is quickly solved because the works become only a click away as opposed to the difficulty of retail outlets, which are nearly impossible for the indie to get in. Limited shelf space becomes a thing of the past.

In the American comics market this becomes an even greater possibility. The American comic market is a world where distributors rule, retailers suffer, many going out of business at steady pace, and the publishers and creators are forced to play whatever hand they are given. All of this can be swept away in an all digital and mobile world.

Of course I don't expect this huge transformation to happen anytime soon. It's going to start small. With devices like the iPhone, though, featuring a revolutionary touch screen and beautiful color rendering, a new space is opening for mobile manga. New creators can get in, creating even specific iPhone manga, and have a huge and ever growing audience awaiting their work. The cost of color is no more. The cost of print extinct. Distribution is under control of the creator if that is the desire. With iPhone manga, or mobile content in general, it's a whole new world.

Tags: Mobile Content, iPhone, Manga, Japan

Today is the day. After a lot of work and strife, and of course fun, this new site is ready to go live. iPhone Alchemy is a site dedicated to mobile content for a new generation. Let's face it, the iPhone is an incredible gadget and revolutionary mobile device, and it is one of the most capable devices for a wide variety of content.

I, for one, see incredible possibilities in the iPhone's very sharp and colorful screen. The first thing that came to my mind is how beautifully it renders full color manga. I have been looking into mobile phone manga for a while now, and even looking into manga on hand held game devices like the Sony PSP. There has never been such a great arena for delivery of mobile manga than is possible with the technology of today.

As an artist who has written manga, speaking mainly of World of Hartz which is published by TOKYOPOP, I see no greater potential for artistic expression than in the all digital arena. Manga in print has costs attached. There's manufacturing, distribution and the limited shelf space in retail outlets. There is a chain that limits what the end user might be able to see regardless of the customer's desire. In the digital arena, especially in Japan, where the digital and mobile market has already become a huge business, independent and doujinshi artists have a voice like never before.

Full color manga is also a rarity because of the cost to print. Books like Range Murata's Robot are very expensive, even for the publisher to make them. Now, in the mobile content arena, beautiful, full color manga can become the standard, the rule instead of the exception. It also becomes possible to deliver more content to more users at an incredibly low price. I think we are going to see a level of growth in the digital manga world that will stagger the mind. I'm ready! What would you like to see?

Tags: iPhone, Manga, Mobile Content