Why are manga magazines printed on color paper in Japan? You can find out here. The answer has to do with recycled paper. It might not matter anyway, since magazine sales are declining. I also heard about the decline from Carl Horn of Dark Horse comics. Even in the U.S., regular magazine sales have been declining for years.
And why is it that manga is cheaper in Japan that in the U.S.? A tankoubon (graphic novel) in Japan costs about $3-$5, whereas the equivalent book in the U.S. cost from $9-$15. A Barnes and Noble buyer at MangaNext last month speculated that the reason may be that the Japanese read more books in general. Since more people use public transportation the Japanese have much more reading time. A professional at New York Comic Con, faced with the same question at a panel, answered that perhaps Japanese bookstores get a better cut of the cover price.
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