Just noticed that digital copies of Progs 1512 - 1517 have been snuck onto the web shop with no fanfare (that I have seen).
Just thought I'd start a thread to say thanks droids! And also to ask, will this be a regular occurrence? Is there a plan to have every single issue of 2000ad available digitally?!
What is the significance of those issues being entered onto the shop, is there a key story??
It seems to be a run in the middle of a few stories but I haven't read them so have no real insight, sadly!
Considering the banned episodes of Cursed Earth* and licensing issues with Dan Dare, Urban Strike and those covers with sci-fi icons of their day like Star Wars and Trek, I don't see a complete digital archive being available. Not for sale by Rebellion, anyway.
* Out of curiosity, does anyone know if those episodes would be un-banned if the UK's proposed new laws on copyright came into effect and allowed "parody exceptions"? I read the Cursed Earth recently in its complete form and the Burger Wars arc is clearly satirical (the Colonel/Dr Moreau arc just being a bit dull).
You are only talking about a handful of covers and stories there. There's no reason why they couldn't eventually upload every prog, with a little censorship where necessary.
I don't know the answer to the parody exception question, but I suspect that the answer is that it's not a copyright issue but a trademark issue, which is a different matter entirely.
On one of the ECBT2000ad podcasts, it was confirmed that the Cursed Earth pages cant be reprinted in order to avoid a lawsuit from the companies in question rather than not being able to be reprinted as a result of a lawsuit. It also prompted a rather strange half page story featuring the jolly Green Giant and Dredd as an apology/free advertising.