N.Y. Times: Internet Blamed for Industry Downtown

[LaylaJade]

I just read this on AVN.com pretty interesting reading.
Layla Jade xoxo

N.Y. Times: Internet Blamed for Adult Industry Downturn
By: David Sullivan
Posted: 11:00 am PDT 6-2-2007

NEW YORK - A June 2 article in the New York Times examines the role of the internet in the porn industry's economic decline. Quoting AVN's annual figures and interviews with producers from the online and DVD sectors, the Times reports that the Net is now creating more problems than profits for established adult studios.

"The industry's online revenue is substantial but is not growing quickly enough to make up for the drop in video income," the article states, noting that DVD sales are suffering due to an abundance of free online content and an oversaturated marketplace. The increased availability of digital video technology and high-speed internet access has resulted in an influx of amateur pornographers, whose efforts have hurt studios' bottom lines and lowered the bar on quality.
"The barrier to get into the industry is so low: you need a video camera and a couple of people who will have sex," AVN President Paul Fishbein told the Times, adding that unless current trends change, adult revenues are likely to shrink this year.

"People are making movies in their houses and dragging and dropping them," said Harvey Kaplan, chief executive of online payments processor GoGoBill.com. "It's killing the marketplace."

Red Light District president David Joseph and Nectar Entertainment CEO Sean Logan both told the Times that they hope to fight the competition from online porn by offering higher production value, better talent and improved packaging - but do consumers care?

"nlike consumers looking for music and other media, viewers of pornography do not seem to mind giving up brand-name producers and performers for anonymous ones, or a well-lighted movie set for a ratty couch at an amateur videographer's house," the article notes.

Kaplan characterized adult producers' use of free internet content as a marketing tool to lure paying customers as a misguided strategy.

"They think that if they give people enough of a free sample, they'll come back and pay, but that's not true," Kaplan told the Times. Instead, Kaplan argued, users are watching what they want for free, and then leaving.

CDGirls.com CTO Manny Ulele disagreed with Kaplan. "The perception of the consumer is that there is free porn," he said. "But most of it nowadays is controlled [...] We've been fine-tuning it for years. We're able to determine exactly what works and what doesn't."

To read the full article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/02/techn ... ref=slogin

[LaylaJade]

No-one has an opinion on this ?

[eroticartist]

Layla,
I write scripts starting at 1000 Euros!
Mike Freeman.

[jimslip]

Very interesting article. Although I don't think it as simple as the market diverting to the internet. I personally think the desire for porn in society is in decline. People are bombarded by erotic imagery all the time and I think alot more want to be "Hands on" they are not content watching a hunk in spandex shorts shagging the predictable dyed blonde with stuck on boobs! They want to do it themselves, hence the explosion in sex parties, sex chat on the internet, webcams etc etc.

I think many producers have sat back for many years (Especially the American studios) churning out the same old thing and now its pay back time.

It's going to get much harder to earn a living, it's quite simple the supply is well exceeding the demand.

[arseneltic]

warrens message seemed to imbly"seen one seen them all",sod that i want to see them all

[LaylaJade]

Yeah was just interested to hear your thouhts on the matter.... i agree with you Jim, Re: The USA studios, but I don't think them doing bigger movies is going to help at all.
Luv Lay xoxox

[jimslip]

I agree Layla, I don't think people want to see "Bigger movies", if you want a big movie go and see "The Fantastic 4" Maybe the Yank porn producers mean "Bigger hair" in their movies! LOL

The problem is at the end of the day all porn is the same, ie people shagging. So it's a question of how this is dressed. So those who are still doing the "Pizza Delivery Boy" shags the customer are doomed. Equally, if the LA studios believe they turn some rubbish script into what they call a "big movie" they are doomed as well. After all what is a "Bigger" movie for them, a bigger pool? Doubling up the cast of hunks in spandex and bandanas? Speed-boats? Fast cars?.............No one cares anymore.

I think the public are moving on (Unfortunately I don't know where!) Porn is not fashionable or cool, by now porn should have had it's own set of celebrities that had crossed into the main stream. Ben Dover has been trying to acheive this for years. It's all a waste of time, we are all doomed (I like this word LOL) to remain in the murky shadows of society, slowly withering away, only to be momentarily plucked from obscurity, when the Media requires an oddball to mock or scoff at, for one of their "Give your side of the story" documentaries.

No, I can see the future and it is bleak............a world where queues of porn stars dejected, humiliated and scorned, line up outside job-centres waiting for hand-outs, being pelted by lookers-on. Their mansions overgrown and their limos jacked up on bricks, even their drug-dealers cross the street to avoid them.......................

WE'RE ALL DOOMED!!

Sorry folks I had a late night last night and I've got a bad hangover.