ICv2 Insider Talks at New York Comic Con

NEWS
ICV2 INSIDER TALKS AT NEW YORK COMIC CON
The Future of Fandom
Posted by Milton Griepp on September 14, 2026 @ 2:17 am CT

An ICv2 Release. ICv2 will host the ICv2 Insider Talks: The Future of Fandom, an industry event for business and creative professionals in association with New York Comic Con on Thursday, October 8, 2026, in the dramatic 4th Floor River Pavilion at the Javits Center.

ICv2 has hosted industry conferences, bringing together the leaders of the comics and graphic novel industry, in conjunction with New York Comic Con since the first show in 2006. This year’s event will be a special 20-year anniversary edition, looking ahead to the future in the three segments that have changed the industry during that history: American comics and graphic novels, manga, and digital, all major topics in the history of our NYCC conferences.

The name of this year’s event, The Future of Fandom, exemplifies the ICv2 focus on the communities that are driving consumer behavior (see “ICv2 – The Business of Fandom”). The ICv2 Insider Talks will build understanding of the fandoms for comics, graphic novels, and manga and where they will take the business in the future.

Speakers at this year’s event are a curated mix of thought leaders who have unparalleled knowledge and vision to help with this process, including Head of Marvel Comics & Franchise Dan Buckley, Kadokawa Retail Ventures and Yen Press President Kurt Hassler, Manga Spot Director of Retail Operations Jim Killen, GlobalComix CEO Henrik Rydberg, and ICv2 President Milton Griepp, along with moderators Rob Salkowitz and Heidi MacDonald.

And the Comic Industry Social Hour is a great opportunity to meet, mingle, and network with other leaders of the industry.

This is a free, ticketed event for industry pros only.

Speakers and attendees include:

• Publishers, creators, IP owners
• Retailers and distributors
• Digital executives     
• Librarians and educators
• Licensing and marketing executives
• Press

What, When and Where
What: The ICv2 Insider Talks will kick off with the Comic Industry Social Hour and registration from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., followed by two hours of programming, including the ICv2 White Paper and panelists from across the comics and graphic novel business.

When: 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Thursday, October 8, 2026

Where: River Pavilion, Jacob Javits Convention Center, New York City

If you are a business or creative professional and would like a free invitation to the event, email Conferences@ICv2.com(please provide you full name, company affiliation or profession).  You must also have a New York Comic Con badge in one of their PRO categories to attend.

If you are press and would like to cover the event, email Conferences@ICv2.com.

If your company is interested in becoming a sponsor of the ICv2 Insider Talks, contact Milton Griepp atMGriepp@ICv2.com.

Here are the details:

Comic Industry Social Hour (3:00-4:00 p.m.)
Enjoy a beverage and meet, mingle, and network with other leaders of the industry.    

The Future of Comics (4:00-4:30 p.m.)
During his time at Marvel, including a 22-year stretch as President and Publisher, current Head of Marvel Comics & Franchise Dan Buckley has been at the center of American comic publishing and the expansion of comics into a major force in the popular culture. As he helps navigate Marvel to a new leadership era and a new base in Burbank, he sits down with Eisner Award-winning journalist Heidi MacDonald (ComicsBeat, Publishers Weekly) to look ahead to the future of comics.

Throughout his 35-year career, Dan Buckley has helped shape Marvel into one of the most influential entertainment brands in the world, stewarding characters and stories that have defined pop culture for more than 85 years. Previously, he led Marvel’s expansion across television, animation, games, consumer products, licensing, and publishing, including Civil War, Secret Wars, and X-Men’s Age of Krakoa. Buckley holds a BA in Economics from St. Lawrence University and an MBA from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Heidi MacDonald is the editor-in-chief of Eisner Award-winning website ComicsBeat.com, and KComicsBeat.com, and a contributing editor to Publishers Weekly. She has edited comics for DC Comics, Disney, First Second Books, Z2 and more. You can hear her bi-weekly on the More to Come podcast.

The Future of Manga (4:30-5:00 p.m.)
Manga fandom is in the midst of a worldwide surge of growth, driven by the wide availability of anime and coordinated efforts to expand the world audience by Japanese companies and government. Few people are better qualified to look at what that means for the future of manga in the U.S. than Kurt Hassler, who spent seven years as the graphic novel buyer for Border Group during the manga surge in the 00s, then went on to co-found Yen Press, and James Killen, who spent 21 years, including the formative years of manga fandom in the U.S., as graphic novel buyer at Barnes & Noble. Both are now key leaders of Manga Spot, a new retail chain specializing in manga with plans to open up to 1,000 stores in the U.S.

Kurt Hassler is the co-founder and President of Yen Press, LLC. A pioneer in the North American manga industry, he helped bring manga into the mainstream during his time as the Graphic Novel Buyer at Borders Group. He also serves as President of KADOKAWA Retail Ventures (KRV), where he oversees the company’s retail operations, including its Manga Spot stores.

James Killen is the Director of Retail Operations for Manga Spot. He is a highly influential, longtime book buyer and pop-culture tastemaker, best known for his 21-year tenure as Barnes & Noble’s buyer for manga, graphic novels, science fiction, fantasy, and role-playing games.

Milton Griepp is the founder and President of Eisner-nominated ICv2, since 2001 the undisputed industry authority on the business of fandom. He is a 50-year veteran of the business and has managed companies that sold over $1 billion in fan products as CEO of Capital City Distribution and Next Planet Over. He also served on the board of comiXology during its key development until its sale to Amazon, and was Vice President and board member of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

The Data Behind Digital (5:00-5:30 p.m.)
Ask a U.S., a Japanese, and a Korean publisher what the US digital market is worth and you’ll get three different answers. GlobalComix works with all three, and CEO Henrik Rydberg will share what reader behavior reveals about what digital actually drives: awareness that builds fandom, merch sales, and content revenue. He’ll show how digital earnings compound across free, subscription, and à la carte, and what publishers still get wrong about them. Moderator Rob Salkowitz will lead the discussion on the data.

Henrik Rydberg is the CEO of GlobalComix, the global platform for comics and manga. He has spent over 20 years at the intersection of creativity and technology, building products and companies. Under his leadership, GlobalComix has grown from a Western comics platform into a global one, bridging the U.S. and Asian markets and expanding what publishers can earn beyond their home turf.

Rob Salkowitz is an Eisner Award-nominated writer about the business of comics, entertainment and pop culture for Forbes, ICv2, Publishers Weekly, Wired and other publications. He’s the author of five books including Comic-Con and the Business of Pop Culture and teaches in the graduate school of communication at the University of Washington in Seattle.

ICv2 White Paper (5:30-6:00 p.m.)
ICv2 CEO Milton Griepp will present the ICv2 White Paper, with the charts and graphs that show the state of the comics and graphic novel market across channels, looking at the trends that will drive fandom into the future.

Milton Griepp is the founder and President of Eisner-nominated ICv2, since 2001 the undisputed industry authority on the business of fandom. He is a 50-year veteran of the business and has managed companies that sold over $1 billion in fan products as CEO of Capital City Distribution and Next Planet Over. He also served on the board of comiXology during its key development until its sale to Amazon, and was Vice President and board member of the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

These companies make this event possible:

Co-Sponsor: GlobalComix
GlobalComix is built to grow the digital market for comics and manga. We help publishers reach new audiences and new markets, translating and distributing their catalogs and building fandom around their IP. True to our name, we connect comics cultures across borders, helping stories travel between East and West and reach readers they otherwise might not. With 300,000+ titles, day-and-date releases, and a rapidly growing roster of publishers, we’re building the category at global scale.

Sponsor: Mad Cave Studios
Mad Cave Studios, established in 2014, is an independent publisher of comic books, graphic novels, and more. Mad Cave’s catalog includes a mix of licensed, creator-owned, and original works, created by a diverse cast of storytellers. Mad Cave Studios is the parent company to imprints Maverick (young adult), Nakama Press (manga, manhua, manhwa, and other international voices), and Papercutz (middle grade/kids). Visit them online atmadcavestudios.com.

About ICv2
ICv2 is where the business of fandom, including comics, graphic novels, manga, hobby games, and merch, comes together around breaking business news, executive interviews, reviews, opinion, and sales charts and trend reports on its website,ICv2.com, in its magazine, Internal Correspondence Annual, and at events like this. For the people on the front lines of the business of fandom, staying ahead of the trends isn’t something that can be left to chance – it’s a basic necessity for being successful. ICv2 is the #1 source of news and information for the thought leaders at the forefront of change.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Milton Griepp
Editor-in-Chief. Milton Griepp’s multi-decade career in the business of geek culture includes distribution CEO, e-commerce retailer CEO, board member of digital comics company, and for the past 25 years, as founder and Editor-in-Chief of ICv2.
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