iToons for iPhones?

As newspapers circle the bowl, features syndicates circle the wagons and think about new delivery systems for the comic strip. Some strips are already archived online, with social networking add-ons and RSS feeds, but the next big thing is likely to be comics delivered straight to your phone, says Uclick CEO Douglas Edwards in a chat with The New York Times. Writes Leslie Berlin:

In the last two months, Uclick has placed several bets on the iPhone, which Mr. Edwards says is a good platform for comics because it has a relatively large screen that makes text easier to read. Uclick sells comics-themed wallpaper and animations for cellphones. In November, the company began selling graphic novels on iTunes.

Last week, Andrews McMeel Universal introduced a new version of its free GoComics Web site, optimized for the iPhone. GoComics has many of the same features as Comics.com, as well as a pay-to-post area for emerging cartoonists called Comics Sherpa. Mr. Edwards says GoComics is profitable but declines to give specific figures.

Should be interesting. The only cartoonist I follow regularly is Pat Oliphant, and his work is hard enough to decipher on a 22-inch Viewsonic monitor, especially the snide asides from Puck the penguin (who is Oliphant speaking for himself rather than on behalf of an editorial board). Edwards may be able to deliver Oliphant to my phone, but that’s no guarantee that I’ll be able to figure out what he’s on about.