The concept of renting Manga just like videos initially seemed ridiculous to me, but after looking around and doing some research I’m not so sure.

Anime Takeout is like the Netflix of Manga and Anime, offering users the ability to order rentals online with no late fees and free shipping.

Then I ran into a manga store page on Remy C’s site that described a phenomenon in Taiwan and China:

“K Bookstore is the current umbrella term in Taiwan for a mutated brand of manga rental stores. Basically it functions as lending library for club members, only you must have the materials consumed within the precincts of the store. Most have quite impressive collections of manga tankoubon, anime and TV series VCDs, video-games, J-pop CDs and magazines. There are roomy couches where you can sit undisturbed and fire through fifteen volumes of manga nonstop. Plus they provide you with computers with not only high-speed access to the internet, but also surround sound systems and high-end display monitors. Most operate twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Drinks are gratis and come in unlimited supply. Some stores even provide you with free sandwiches for lunch and inexpensive meals at the club’s canteen for dinner.”

It’s no accident then, that K Bookstores have become the hottest hangouts in town for the animanga fan. The business model has been accordingly transplanted in Hong Kong, and on both sides of the shore some successful companies begin to emerge as chain-businesses with networks extending from one neighborhood to another, and in some cases even from one city to another. Nowadays, to “K” a manga series means to skim through it at the nearest store, since most of them charge you by the hour.”

But in Japan, the Manga Rental doesn’t seem to be working out so well. According to Japanese Tech Stock Weekly:

“The business of manga and comic rental attracted the attention of the industry earlier this year when Tsutaya, one of the country’s largest CD and DVD rental chains, said that they would start offering manga rental at some of their stores across Japan. The typical cost for renting manga is 90 yen (US$80) per volume. Tsutaya is currently offering manga rental at a few of their stores as a test project, but plans to expand the service to more stores in August 2008. As for the impact manga rental will have on the market, only 2.6 percent of those surveyed said that manga rental would make them buy more manga”

It seems like the Manga rental concept still faces some challenges, but with the ever-increasing number of otaku all across the globe I think there is still room for a number of alternative ways for getting manga into the hands of fans.

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