When you think web comic hosting there are five names that come to mind: ComicSpace, Webcomics Nation, Smack Jeeves, Comic Genesis, and Drunk Duck. Eighty percent of the webcomics just may be hosted by these guys. Now here comes along the sort of news the corporate world would go crazy for but the government would fall apart trying to block. On October 29th Josh Roberts and Joey Manley announced the intent to merge businesses into one corporate entity. With the help of E-Line Ventures, a New Jersey-based ‘double bottom line’ early-stage investment firm, to secure the necessary funding and support to effectively merge and run the combined business. Here’s the best part of the announcement:

The properties to be part of the new venture include: ComicSpace.com, WebcomicsNation.com, OnlineComics.net, GraphicNovelReview.com, TalkAboutComics.com, ModernTales.com, Girlamatic.com, Serializer.net, and GraphicSmash.com. Those last four will continue to operate as separate brands, with their own domains, though they will gets lots of cool new features thanks to the increased resources each provides for the others.

All of the others — ComicSpace, WCN, OnlineComics, GNR, and TAC, will be merged into one fully-integrated site, combining all the best features from each of the existing sites with many other new features, all designed to empower creators to reach their own goals — find larger audiences, make a living (or at least a little more money) from their webcomics, and reach out to new distribution channels, like mobile and print, etc. — while maintaining full control and ownership of their intellectual property.

That combined will be called ComicSpace.