Udon Entertainment Signs Book Market Distribution Deal with Publisher Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster will handle new releases and backlist titles for all Udon books for the book trade worldwide as of Wednesday. Udon Entertainment entered on February 13 a non-exclusive distribution agreement with Lunar Distribution to handle its direct market sales, beginning with May 2025-shipping comic book products. With the agreement, Udon Entertainment's two 2025 Free Comic Book Day titles — Street Fighter vs. Rival Schools #1 and Mega Man #0 (pictured right) — will be handled exclusively by Lunar Distribution. Udon's titles will also be available through Universal Distribution and Diamond Comics Distribution. Udon stated to retailers that orders for the two titles made through Diamond Comic Distributors will be canceled, and retailers are asked to reorder the books from Lunar Distribution.Udon Entertainment's Chief of Operations Erik Ko stated regarding the decision: Udon Entertainment also assured that with the exception of the two Free Comic Book Day titles, almost all orders placed with Diamond will still be filled. Udon listed Street Fighter Prime #0, Final Fight #4, and Street Fighter Masters: Guile #1 comics as products "shipping exclusively through Diamond before May 2025."This year's Free Comic Book Day is scheduled on May 3. Udon's titles Street Fighter vs. Rival Schools #1 and Mega Man #0 will lead into new mini-series and other products for 2025. Diamond announced on January 14 that it has filed a voluntary petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court in the District of Maryland. Companies who file under Chapter 11 are able to maintain business assets, which may or may not include licenses, in order to attempt to reorganize. Diamond cited that the decreased consumer activity, rising operating costs, and declining sales in the comic book industry post-COVID-19 led to its decision.Diamond will continue to operate business during this time. Orders will continue to process as usual. The company plans to continue running Free Comic Book Day.Diamond's two largest unsecured creditors are Penguin Random House (a publishing company and distributor for other publishers, including manga ones such as Dark Horse) and Bandai. Diamond owes these two companies US$9,202,181 and US$4,348,743, respectively. Diamond also owes money to companies such as Viz Media, Square Enix, The Pokémon Company International, Hasbro, and more. Bankruptcy filings stated the company owed Udon Entertainment US$202,694.Source: Press release
