Among the various people interviewed by Multiversity at C2E2, one stands out for not being a comic professional. Matt McCullough is the founder and CEO of Rhovit.com, a website he hopes will revolutionize how digital comics are distributed.The site will provide creators of all types of media, including movies, comics, and music, with an outlet to market their content at reasonable prices.
Matt made some time to answer some questions about his project.
First, what does “Rhovit” mean?
Matt McCullough: Well, it’s not Greek. I’ve had a lot of people ask that. Originally it was called “Rhovi”, like “Roving around”, but that was already taken. So, we just put a t on the end.
What inspired Rhovit? Have you been a fan of comics?
MM: Not really. I was with a film company, and we made some short films. We wanted to do some features, but we had trouble finding distributors. I knew some writers and game developers who were having the same issue. The idea to create a distribution hub sprang from that, but we couldn’t just combine all the venues. We needed a better business plan.
We came up with a system where anyone can pay a small fee ($9.99/month) to host up to 49 items in a virtual store front. If people buy their product, the creator gets all the profit (minus the cost of transaction). We split the ad revenue.
If someone lists a comic on Rhovit, can they still shop it around to publishers?
MM: Absolutely. We want them to. This is a non-exclusive deal, and we want them to be as successful with their product as they can. We have a mix of commercial and indie stuff.
Will there be any kind of content filter, or will you be accepting any and everything?
MM: There will be some criteria that has to be met. The site is mostly video based, so every user will have to have at least one video. There won’t be any porn or malicious material – basically the same type of filter YouTube has.
Where do you expect Rhovit to be in one year?
MM: We’re starting to sign foreign content now, so it’ll be a global site in one year. We’re planning to have 10 million users, and we’re partnering with companies to create a portal, like comixology in six different platforms.
If someone buys a comic off Rhovit, what exactly will they get?
MM: If you buy a comic, you’ll get a .pdf.
Will we see anything by you on Rhovit?
MM: Not in comics, but I do plan to put up some original content films. We’re talking with companies now about producing some original content. We’re also talking with MGM and Miramax about getting some old content from the 60s and 70s which they haven’t released, like old movie trailers they have sitting around. It’d be a win-win, because it’d drum up interest in us, and interest in whatever properties they’d be promoting.
So, what would you want a potential user to know about Rhovit right now?
MM: Right now, we’re offering some free swag for new signers. Plus, there are built in tools so anyone’s content can always be seen, regardless of the content’s age. We have staff picks, popular items, and people can purchase a spot to get their stuff seen, too.
