One of the biggest sources of funds for the semiannual Comiket/Tokyo is their sale of advertisements or promotional spaces in their directory, think of it as the Comic Book Buyers Guide on a massive OD of steroids, and the subsequent sale of the directory. The other source of income for the show is that they do charge for table space "roughly $65 + $8 application fee" and a small amount for use of the changing rooms for Cosplay also $8 / person for the day.
As for the directory is about the size of the NY city phone book and features approximately 50 or more small square advertisements per page. From what I recall from talking with some of the Japanese fans at Nippon 2007, each square advertisement is roughly $20 and the book is about $10. I am told being listed in it is almost mandatory for success as a manga artist and no true Japanese fan would be without one. Given its shear size, I suspect that one or more of the major companies also helps with its publication.
I only wish I had realized that in 2007 the summer version of Comiket 72 was August 17-19, as I would have gleefully gone early rather than stayed later to attend. For English details on this massive show see: http://www.comiket.co.jp/info-a/WhatIsEng080528.pdf (What is Comic Market (aka Comiket)
For comparison purposes: Comiket 72 attendance was reported as 550,000 over 3 days (which if you assume is 1 person x 3 days = approximately 183,000 average daily attendance, with a potentially much high total number of unique attendees). Using this method of counting San Diego Comic Con 2009 would be 4 days x 125,000 (sold out / membership cap) - 500,000 + preview night attendance (unknown).
Comiket finances
As for the directory is about the size of the NY city phone book and features approximately 50 or more small square advertisements per page. From what I recall from talking with some of the Japanese fans at Nippon 2007, each square advertisement is roughly $20 and the book is about $10. I am told being listed in it is almost mandatory for success as a manga artist and no true Japanese fan would be without one. Given its shear size, I suspect that one or more of the major companies also helps with its publication.
I only wish I had realized that in 2007 the summer version of Comiket 72 was August 17-19, as I would have gleefully gone early rather than stayed later to attend. For English details on this massive show see: http://www.comiket.co.jp/info-a/WhatIsEng080528.pdf (What is Comic Market (aka Comiket)
For comparison purposes: Comiket 72 attendance was reported as 550,000 over 3 days (which if you assume is 1 person x 3 days = approximately 183,000 average daily attendance, with a potentially much high total number of unique attendees). Using this method of counting San Diego Comic Con 2009 would be 4 days x 125,000 (sold out / membership cap) - 500,000 + preview night attendance (unknown).