Every year, many people join the chaotic scramble to get into San Diego Comic-Con, and most of them fail, thanks to high demand as well as expensive ticket, travel and hotel prices that increase every year.
But what if you could still go to Comic-Con, but also stay at home at the same time?
Now, Comic-Con plans on making that possible, thanks to a new partnership with Lionsgate that will bring Comic-Con programming directly to TVs, smartphones, consoles, PCs and other devices for a monthly subscription fee (which will probably cost a lot less than an actual Comic-Con ticket).
This new subscription service won't just bring Comic-Con panels to fans' across the world, but will also offer new scripted and unscripted series, entertainment commentary shows, archives of previous Comic-Cons and behind-the-scenes programming, as well as a "highly-curated selection of film and TV genre titles." That includes interviews with celebrities and live coverage of Comic-Con events.
"For nearly half a century, Comic-Con has served as the definitive common ground where the fans of genre entertainment come together to express their passion for comics and pop culture," Seth Laderman, EVP and general manager for Comic-Con HQ, said in a statement. "Comic-Con HQ aspires to extend that exchange 365 days a year, bringing everything we love about Comic-Con to the world in ways never before seen and experienced."
Fans who pay the monthly subscription fee will get ad-free access to all of Comic-Con HQ's content, as well as live streaming of Comic-Con coverage. Comic-Con plans on announcing more about its partnerships and programming for Comic-Con HQ over the next few weeks.
Anyone interested in signing up can preregister for free beta access at www.comic-conhq.com. Beta access begins on May 7 to coincide with Free Comic Book Day. However, the beta is only available on browsers and mobile devices. Eventually, though, Comic-Con HQ will roll out to Roku, AppleTV and Xbox One, with additional devices getting added later this year. No pricing details have been released.
Last year, Wizard World launched its own con streaming service, ConTV, which offers a similar line-up of con programming, as well as movies, TV and original series.
