The Origins of Night Owl

Wham Bang Comics have just published three special "Origin of Night Owl" comics on ROK Comics, all of which are free to view online:

Part One



Part Two



Part Three



Night Owl, the creation of young Jake Tinsley, written by father Ben, is one of a handful of strps (so far) selected by ROK's Chinese partners for distribution in China alongside Garfield, TMNT, Crazy Mary, Crumb and others.

Awaiting the Eleventh Hour

Eleventh Hour Volume One from British indie publisher Markosia in association with creators Orang Utan Comics, due for release in June, is now available to pre-order from your local comic shop.

Featuring twelve stories across 80 pages of stunning artwork from the creative minds at Orang Utan Comics Studio with the usual high production values of an AAM/Markosia published title.

ROK Comics is working with Markosia to publish some of its titles on mobile: Dark Mists is in progress and is also being translated into Chinese.

You can find it on page 200 of Diamond's Previews catalogue, the order code is APR08 3484.

• Visit www.orangutancomics.co.uk to find out more.

Ian Gibson Art News

Glossy art magazine the Art Review showcases 30 stars of Tomorrow in its March 2008 edition and, although he's not featured on the actual list it self, 2000AD and Annie Droid artist Ian Gibson makes a play for some of Charles Saatchi's spare cash by illustrating the cover of the magazine.

Annie Droid is one of several ROK Comics being translated into Chines for ROK Comics Chinese partners.

Web Link: www.artreview.com

ROK Acquires Mobile Applications Developer Geniem

ROK Entertainment Group, the global mobile entertainment company and owners of ROK Comics, today announced it had acquired a 51% controlling interest in Geniem, a leading Finnish mobile and web applications development company.

Geniem pioneered On-Device Portals (ODP) in 2003 and offer rich mobile marketing via these ODPs, Bluetooth marketing solutions and white label social networking applications for Media, Brands and Carriers. Currently their services are being used by household names including Nokia, Volvo, ABC, Pepsi, SonyBMG, Australian Broadcast Corporation, Mondadori France, Digital MultiChoice, Rotana, Samsung, Sanoma Belgium, Santander Bank and SonyEricsson.

"This acquisition marks another milestone in the development of ROK" said Laurence Alexander, Group CEO of ROK, "as it augments our existing mobile products portfolio by placing us in the forefront of on device portals, Bluetooth technologies and social media via mobile and web applications. With over 15 million mobile phone installations globally, Geniem's technology is ideally positioned to power the new generation of enhanced mobile media services."

"I see major opportunities in partnering with ROK to roll-out our exciting products for ROK's existing customer base. Especially with the introduction of the new white label mobile social networking product targeted mainly for network carriers," said Tuomas Kumpula, CEO of Geniem.

Garfield Gathering!

Garfield devotees from near and far are looking forward to their annual Garfield Gathering in the US in June, to celebrate all things Garfield, one of the comics appearing on ROK Comics WAP services in Pakistan and being translated into Chinese.

Considered a must-do for the serious Garfield collector, this event is sponsored by fans and collectors for the purpose of fun, friendship, and the ever-popular Garfield product swap meet and sale.

This year's convention takes place June 19-22 in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee.

• For more details, visit www.garfieldgathering.com.