Webtoons are not just digital comics: vertical scrolling changes everything.
While webtoons are a form of digital comic, they are fundamentally different from traditional digital comics. And the key difference, the vertical scroll, isn’t just a gimmick. It’s the core of a narrative revolution.
Digital comics have been around for a while. Most of them simply replicate the paper format: pages, spreads, and horizontal panel layouts. The reading experience mimics that of a printed album, with readers swiping left or flipping pages. Webtoons, on the other hand, were born in South Korea as a mobile-first format. They were designed for digital consumption, especially on smartphones.
The vertical scroll is not a cosmetic adjustment. It’s a narrative redesign. Instead of moving from page to page, the reader scrolls continuously from top to bottom. This layout allows for a seamless flow and a unique pacing. Creators can use blank spaces to build suspense, control timing, and even insert pauses that resemble cinematic silence. Panels are optimized for narrow screens, so there’s no need to zoom or pan around. The reading experience is clean, fluid, and perfectly suited to mobile devices.
Vertical storytelling has been the key to the webtoon’s massive success with the mobile-first generation. It removes friction from the reading experience and appeals to a broader, often younger, audience. Industry players have taken notice. French studio MAKMA, for example, offers webtoonization services, adapting traditional comics into vertical scroll narratives. Their expertise with Printoonize bridges the gap between classic bande dessinée and the booming webtoon format, proving that the two are not interchangeable.
Since their debut in the early 2000s on Naver Webtoon, webtoons have exploded in popularity. The webtoon industry is a multi-billion dollar market. Platforms like Webtoon, Tapas, Tappytoon, and Piccoma attract millions of daily readers. The demographic is predominantly young and female, under 30, which heavily influences the dominant genres: romance, fantasy, drama, action, and thriller.
France is catching up fast. New players like ONO, Allskreen, and Wtoon are developing original vertical content with local creators, adapting storytelling techniques to compete with the Korean giants while maintaining their cultural identity.
In short, while webtoons and digital comics may seem similar, the storytelling logic is entirely different. The vertical scroll isn’t a trend: it’s a structural innovation that redefines how comics are read and created. For publishers and creators looking to expand their reach in the mobile space, converting existing IP into webtoons isn’t optional anymore. It’s the future. And studios like MAKMA, with their Printoonize solution, are leading the charge.
