In an attempt to cross-pollinate all their best properties, SciFi Channel has announced a new partnership with Richard Branson's Virgin Comics, according to Variety. At least five comic book properties are planned, with Virgin handling publication while SciFi and parent NBC Universal get dibs on all other media platforms. The partnership was announced yesterday at ComicCon in New York.

SciFi exec Dave Howe said this will be a way for the company to develop new concepts with more focus on the bottom line. "It's a smart way for us to short circuit the development process without spending $6 million on a pilot." Additionally, this spreads SciFi's interests from just a television and web-based property into print media, a long-time staple of genre interest. The controlling board will consist of an equal mix of SciFi execs and Virgin operatives, and the first comics will be books by well-established writers. After that, anything's possible.