The Anatomy of a Barcode for the Comic Book Industry
Comic Book Barcodes Explained
A comic book barcode has semantic meaning. This document is the COMET approved method of using barcodes.
How do comic book barcodes differ from other barcodes?
A comic book barcode contains the publisher, the series, the issue number, the cover, and the printing of a periodical comic. This information describes various elements of the periodical in a semantic way.
UPC barcodes are essential to being able to sell items in retail stores, and while UPC’s have been seen on retail comics since the 1980’s. In 2009, Diamond Comic Distributors set a semantic standard for the 5 digit supplemental barcode to allow for easier identification within their systems.
All new comics must be assigned at solicitation, and subsequently ship, with a 12 digit UPC-A code with a 5 digit supplement provided by the publisher. Due to varying shelving/display habits by retailers, we recommend that all comics have the barcode printed on the front cover whenever possible.
The Anatomy of a Comic Book Bar Code
A comic book bar code contains groupings of semantic data which helps to describe the item and allows various 1 dimensional scanners to determine what they are looking at, while also attempting to be human readable.
A comic book bar code has 5 primary elements which together paint a picture as to what this product is.
- Denotes a UPC approved number system. 0, 1, 6, 7 or 9 are reserved for products (5 and 9 are reserved for coupons, 2 is used for random weight items)
- The next 5 numbers are the manufacturer or publisher code, this code is assigned by the UCC council to a company.
- The next five digits are the product code as created and assigned by the publisher. Publishers use a unique 5 digit code for each title (or one-shot) they publish, and will use this code for all items they create with this code. This is essentially a “series code” which can be used to tie like items together.
- The final single digit is a check digit, and is a math equation that the barcode reader calculates based on the first 11 digits of the UPC code. The barcode reader calculates this digit and determines that the code is valid.
- The final 5 digit supplemental code allows the publisher to identify the issue, cover and printing of the periodical you hold in your hands!
There are two primary methods of presenting a comic book barcode.
With the rise of multiple variant covers, comic book barcodes needed to adapt to the increasing number of covers. Two systems of barcodes developed out of this need.
Traditional – III C P
Traditionally (since 2009) the extended UPC data on a comic book barcode has been defined with Issue, Issue, Issue, Cover, Printing.
Where the first issue of a series would be represented by 001 in the first three digits, the first cover would be represented with a 1 in the fourth digit, and the first printing would be represented with a 1 in the fifth digit position of the extended barcode.
Extended Cover – II CC P
With the rise of multiple covers, and a frequent renumbering of series, some publishers opted for an Issue, Issue, Cover, Cover, Printing format.
In this case, the first issue of a series would be represented by 01 in the first two digits, the first cover would be represented with a 01 in the third and fourth digits, and the first printing would be represented with a 1 in the fifth digit position of the extended barcode.
III C P – Break Down
- UPC Item Code
- Publisher Code
- Product (or Series) Code
- Check Digit
- Issue Number represented in 3 digits (001 – 999)
- Cover Number (1-9)
- Printing Number (1-9)
II CC P – Break Down
- UPC Item Code
- Publisher Code
- Product (or Series) Code
- Check Digit
- Issue Number represented in 2 digits(01-99)
- Cover Number represented in 2 digits (1-99)
- Printing Number (1-9)
Key Note on Barcode Methods
When you choose a method (IIICP vs IICCP) you MUST continue with this method for the entire use of that barcode. Since we do not currently have a data element to determine IIICP vs IICCP, we recommend maintaining your chosen method across your entire company.
Where to purchase UPC Bar Codes
Information about standards and procedures for obtaining UPC bar codes can be obtained from GS1 US at https://www.gs1us.org/
UPC bar codes can also be obtained through one of the following authorized UPC resellers:
What other kinds of bar codes are there?
The book trade uses ISBN and EAN’s.
ISBN numbers (International Standard Book Number) are the international order numbers for books. For books they are similar to the EAN-13 barcode for food.
An ISBN barcode is created using the EAN-13 symbology with a special prefix, for example the prefix 978. So the ISBN is a special form of the EAN-13 code. This special form is also called Bookland EAN-13.
ISBN’s can be obtained from Bowker and other ISBN resellers.
Bookland EAN
The Bookland EAN code and symbol is comprised of 13 digits incorporating the ISBN plus a separate 5-digit price-related add-on, for a total of 18 digits. This symbol is the machine-readable symbol of choice for all published books.
Each ISBN consists of 5 elements with each section being separated by spaces or hyphens. Three of the five elements may be of varying length:
- Prefix element – currently this can only be either 978 or 979. It is always 3 digits in length
- Registration group element – this identifies the particular country, geographical region, or language area participating in the ISBN system. This element may be between 1 and 5 digits in length
- Registrant element – this identifies the particular publisher or imprint. This may be up to 7 digits in length
- Publication element – this identifies the particular edition and format of a specific title. This may be up to 6 digits in length
- Check digit – this is always the final single digit that mathematically validates the rest of the number. It is calculated using a Modulus 10 system with alternate weights of 1 and 3.
- A separator element (the number 5)
- The price with no decimals, anything over 99.99 will be displayed as 9999
ISBN-13
Since January 1 2007 the ISBN standard has been ISBN-13, a 13 digit barcode.
Each ISBN consists of 5 elements with each section being separated by spaces or hyphens. Three of the five elements may be of varying length:
- Prefix element – currently this can only be either 978 or 979. It is always 3 digits in length
- Registration group element – this identifies the particular country, geographical region, or language area participating in the ISBN system. This element may be between 1 and 5 digits in length
- Registrant element – this identifies the particular publisher or imprint. This may be up to 7 digits in length
- Publication element – this identifies the particular edition and format of a specific title. This may be up to 6 digits in length
- Check digit – this is always the final single digit that mathematically validates the rest of the number. It is calculated using a Modulus 10 system with alternate weights of 1 and 3.
ISBN-10
DEPRECATED (but you will still find this on old books). The International Standard Book Number was the standard until December 31 2005.
Each ISBN-10 has four sections, like in this example, ISBN 0-061-96436-0. Each section has a different meaning:
- The group identifier identifies the country or region it has been published.
- The publisher identifier represents the publisher of the book.
- The title identifier identifies the book edition. It may have up to six digits and helps ensure the ISBN is 10 digits long.
- The check digit is created using the first nine digits in the ISBN and is used to check its accuracy.
The COMET White Paper
The COMET white paper was produced by the ComicsPro Metadata Working Group during 2023 and released formally on February 23rd 2024 to address growing data concerns in the comics industry. The Comet Standard aims to create a standardized approach to comics metadata by implementing atomic data principles and adopting the BISAC categorization system in order to achieve consistency, improve data accuracy, and streamline processes for retailers, distributors, and publishers.