Is it possible adult has just hit the brick wall?
 

I mean if you think about it, there was a natural progression from old school theaters to VHS to DVD and then to online. While online has seemingly enjoyed various ways to expand its market, surfers has become smarter over the years and savvy on how to get what they like for the lowest cost possible or even free (tubes, usenet, torrents, etc...)

Lots have said to innovate or die, but it just seems as if adult has finally hit the wall with what can be invented. There's only so many ways to shoot a scene before you end up looking like someone else's content. Adult has come up with virtually every way to make $$$ from content short of providing a real simulation or delivering the actual talent to the customer to enjoy personally. What else can possibly be done that hasn't already been done or rehashed a thousand times?

The consumer dynamics are changing, especially with the younger porn buying generation. Judging by my past students, this generation has grown up in a convergent culture that does not want what some company forces on them in regards to media just like they want to be able to enjoy their media anywhere on any device they see fit.

In my last year of teaching, students tended to favor re-cutting popular works and movies to provide their own meaning to the content, essentially remixing their idea of the way the content should appear or work. Much like mainstream, the YouTube generation no longer cares about corporate copyright means or costs because they are focused on instant gratification. This can be seen in many students selecting YouTube to watch videos of some of the worst crap over more polished/higher quality professionally produced content.

I can see any area where personalizing the experience for the user could be more beneficial and it is something the tubes cannot offer. Allowing the user to cut their own scenes gives them the power to make decisions on the final product that they will enjoy. Provide them with opportunities to decide how long shots should last and when the cum shot should occur. This gives the user a chance to be a part of the scene (virtually) rather than just a customer watching what some else decided for them.

But it just seems like with the abundance of content available, free, pirated, or paid, there is no major reason for consumers to pay for adult content any longer unless it is something that they cannot get anywhere else without having to pay. If all porn production stopped this very moment, consumers would still have more than enough content to enjoy for the remainder of their life without having seen everything ever produced.

Adult, much like the RIAA/MPAA has suffered from the increase in knowledge for consumers in getting what they want for free and those lost sales will never be recovered. With today's graduates becoming tomorrow's adult content consumers, there is a very dangerous trend that will continue to eat away at the profits of the adult community that will be not felt nearly as hard by the MPAA/RIAA.

Consider the multiple ways artists and studios make money off of their product. Live performances, guest appearances, marketing, licensing, first run shows in theaters, and online whereas adult has seemingly abandoned DVDs in favor of online delivery. How many customers of online adult actually watch the same videos multiple times? No where the same number that will watch the same mainstream movie over and over or listen to the same song over and over. Even in an era where music artists are seeing declining profits, companies are proactively increasing fan interactivity using Adobe Air apps or mobile phone apps.

Just like video editing software has matured over the years, programmers are finding it hard to offer new features to wow users. Adult is no different. But I do believe that providing more interaction for the end user (more than commenting or rating videos) through either watered down online editing or even hooking up a webcam to allow viewers to be behind the scenes live as content is shot will help prolong this business.

So what other ways can we personalize this for the customer? I don't believe we are selling a fantasy any more but more importantly, we are selling an experience. An experience that cannot be obtained anywhere else. Maybe thats why homemade/girlfriend is so popular now because it is almost like experiencing a real relationship, only virtually. SellYourSexTape is more than just sex. Its almost like being in the room with a real couple and you get to understand more about the characters which makes the sex 10x more enjoyable to watch.

Cue up the "youre new, you dont know shit, stfu" posts.

Hello Melissa.Show us your tits please :)

If you are having problems in this economy. Learn to sell.

Take a class in marketing, business, psychology. Learn to offer either a better product, better service, more value then your competition.

:2 cents:

Problem is iTunes makes a fortune on music.

I recently came from mainstream because I see so much potential to innovate in the adult space it's not even funny...

The wall is an illusion; a construct of the adult industry being so far removed from mainstream for so long that it can't see anything past its own self imposed limitations. Many are stuck behind it, few are progressing past it...

everyone's an expert.

Making excuses is easier.

It requires almost no thought, or hard work. Just follow the herd.

:2 cents:

people are buying certain things still. you are never going to find out what by looking at all possibilities from a distance then make a rational decision to what might sell the best. you are going to have to get your hands dirty and find out.

of course it is easier to write an essay on gfy.

One man's wall is another man's starting point...

Agreed but where has an adult app been developed since adult will never see the light of day on iTunes? Seems to me Brazzers could have done something much better than the traffic grab in developing a similar app that would allow all content producers to sell their content directly to the customer instead of relying on traffic, affiliates, etc... for sales.

The only way the membership model works is if you can protect the original stream 100% similar to what Rhapsody did with their all you can eat music subscriptions to prevent sharing but as has been pointed out before here, screen recording still defeats but at a much slower pace.

As a surfer, I hate being locked to a browser experience for content consumption. ITunes and other media apps that users can store locally allow me to enjoy my purchases anywhere I like.

Like I said before, everyone sells a fantasy that can be purchased at hundreds of other sites. If I were going to buy porn, I want an experience that I will remember instead of some "fantasy" that's fulfilled in 20 minutes. I want to be a part of the product that affects me personally and creates a personal connection more than just be a consumer of it. How else can you explain why so many shitty artists have such a huge fan base? There is something personal there for their fans.

yet despite all this progression old school theaters actually still exist.

Quite true yet for some reason consumers have this insatiable demand for the newest fresh piece of ass off the street. WHY when they have all this old porn lying around they haven't seen? Why would a guy rather watch a new movie with a 50 year old Nina Hartley than watch an old one( that he hasn't seen ) when she was 25? So while yes there is enough porn to last a lifetime if all porn production shut down today consumers would be BEGGING for new stuff within 6 months.

Apparently you missed my entire point. I don't see there being much left out there that hasn't already been done by adult in regards to content. It's pretty safe to say with the the porn versions of tv shows, movies, and political figures, nothing short of a real simulation or live performance in the flesh is left to do. Nearly every porn movie is interchangeable with the next and nearly every girl is interchangeable with the next "hot" girl in the biz. Nothing is unique anymore.

But I guess I could have just wrote "fuck the tubes, fuck gfy, fuck TJ, fuck Brazzers" instead of actively using educated thoughts to help come up with ideas to ensure there is an adult industry to be in. Mark my words, at some point, those things that people buy will stop because they will be able to find it somewhere for free. Case in point, I was about to start promoting teenkasia but looking at Newzxxx, I saw her entire 8GB site rip is on the newsgroups which will find its way to the torrent sites. Why bother wasting traffic there? Same for the dancingbear, amatureallure, unlimitedmilfs, mexicunts, freshouttahighschool, realexgirlfriends, seemygf, allinternal, fuckfordollars, melissamidwest, ravenriley, arielrebel, ifilmmyself etc.... all there, entire site rips. So how can sponsors compete for $$$ with their own product that is out there for free?

Dale Earnhardt "just" hit a brick wall.


.

That's my point. They aren't begging for it now because they are going to places like Tube8 and Pornhub to get it for free. Honest question. What happens when the consumer realizes that they do not need to pay for the same content they can create at home and share with other users like YouTube does now? While the content may not be as high quality, will they even care if it costs them nothing to share/view with others online? Once consumers realize the same amateur/girlfriend content they are buying now can be had for free through a online community that does not revolve around sales and memberships, its all over for that niche.

the answer is simple... they will all go to fmltube.com

by the number of threads about this lately on GFY - the adult biz is a train wreck

some of those sites you posted still sell very well despite tubes and torrents and such.

of course if you would have been working testing and experimenting instead of essay writing you would have known that and have gained some experiential insight on why some shit sells despite the free porn out there ......

Shit is over, sell something tangible.

i don't even know why i bother posting. i don't even really care. have better shit to do. peace out ...

Music still sells well today but not as well as it once did either. The more educated the consumer becomes about where to obtain the material for free, the less buyers you have later on. But if those things still sell so well in spite of tubes, torrents, etc.., then why all the griping about pornhub, etc...?

:1orglaugh Not hardly. I will not host illegal content ever. :thumbsup

don't you embed vids from illegal tubes to have no overhead and make 2x your money already...

Of course a lot of people don't care about quality. Maybe we shouldn't be trying to sell ice to Eskimos. Some people DO care. And a tube video may look ok on your 20 inch monitor but when people start getting larger monitors or hooking them up to their HDTVs they are going to look like absolute shit and no worth jacking off too. I'm pretty sure people are getting tired of jacking off sitting in a chair staring at a monitor. Back in the day I'd be jacking off to my VHS porn or magazines in my bed. There's no way you can watch tube porn that is a 400-500 kbps stream on a 50 inch HDTV and enjoy it. It would take at least triple that to make it mildly watchable. And no tube site has the money for that kind of bandwidth. Trust me there are some peole out there I'm sure that are watching tube movie that are thinking "Man I wish I get see this in higher quality" and that's the guy you should be trying to get. The 40 year old that had the ability to jack off to scrambled porn on cable back when he was 13 will always choose FREE over quality and there is no point trying to convince him otherwise.

Nope, all sponsor hosted content. That shows me for having morals and ethics :1orglaugh

moobs?
you sound like Raffi

First of all, the progression from theaters to VHS to DVD to online is due more of a privacy issue than a technology issue. No one wants anyone to know they beat off, let alone what kind of porn you beat your meat to, and the internet has done a great job of solving this issue.

For the first time in the history of our business, porn is being used to peddle something else. And giving it away in order to trick guys into thinking they're gonna get laid off the Facebook of Sex or AFF is gonna implode sooner or later.

Cams / live sex shows might be the future, especially if the end user can call the shots -- from booking the talent to directing them in action.

Back when I was my son's age( 14 ) that was true. You never admitted to jacking off. Now boys don't give a fuck they all admit to it. And us grown up guys too. No one gives a fuck anymore. If you tried to say you didn't jackoff no one would believe you and if you actually didn't you would be considered weird.

Your arguments are outstanding - but flawed in one essential area: what you are basically advocating is giving the consumer/surfer/customer MORE of what they already can get in abundance. "Hey, I know you've got 10 BILLION songs, movies, books, porn vids, fill in the blank, so how would you like fifteen billion MORE??? Only THIS time/THIS way you can choose it, mix it yourself, customize it, fill in the blank."

Once you've had an orgasm the first thing you don't especially want is another orgasm, let alone fifteen. Orgasms are not like cocaine. I'm talking guys here, not gals.

So, in the end, there's nothing that can be done UNTIL time takes it's toll, and people ultimately choose what they're into and everything just fragments all to hell. Then, with succeeding generations, it all gets rebuilt again, in a slightly new & 'improved" way. That's history, and it sucks to be stuck in it, but what'cha gonna do?

HAPPY GUINNESS DAY EVERYBODY!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

Melissa, the reality is that most people here are incapable of thinking about yesterday, or tomorrow. They can only think about today and bitch about whatever everybody else is bitching about.

Like the guy who says tubes make no money but doesn't have a tube. He has no understanding of how to monetize a tube and therefore thinks that tubes don't make money. He reckons that if he can't do something then nobody can do it.

You're thinking outside of the box and that scares a lot of people around here.

were you an english teacher?

:thumbsup If only all tubes would do that

:2 cents:

I masturbate to the smell of my farts.



















Put that in your pipe and smoke it.

Nope, taught TV Production but always focused on writing as the key component. :)

Agree to disagree. People still don't admit to it. I dunno what circle you and your son hang out in, but I dunno anyone who talks about beating off. :2 cents:

fuckmorals got to get paid
let me buy that name lol

Show us your vagina

all that we need is a more modern dmca law. Which will happen. Police your stuff and you will gain back some ground. Seriously, the last 6 months I have been infiltrating forums, ferreting people out, and believe me when I tell you 3/4 of these people are kids.
They will change their habits when they grow up. The other 1/4 are just true geeks who never paid for porn. This is fightable, we just need to draw a line and put people on one side or the other or you are sleeping with the enemy.
Duke

No, keep your dickhole away from the smell of my farts hustler.

LOL :1orglaugh

have you ever told friend about some great porn site or movie? Or has a friend ever told you about a great porn site or movie? WTF do you think your friend was doing at that site? What does your friend think you were doing at that site? So even without admitting you jack off you do admit you jack off.

:2 cents:

In my humble opinion...Melissa you are making the mistake of generalization. Words like "every" and "nothing" never are accurate.

You said that there is "nothing" out there that is new and "every" site looks the same etc., etc.

You're totally missing the "it" factor of this business.

Yes, generic content is generic content. But outside of the valley and the dinosaur DVD companies...there are girls who are genuine stars with huge fan bases. And THAT only grows.

Let me analogize it like this:
Let's say there are a thousand rock clubs in one town. And every one of those rock clubs have the exact same decor, the exact same price, the exact same drinks, etc. And they all have a cover band playing songs by The Rolling Stones. Except one. One of those bars has everything identical to the rest except The Rolling Stones ARE the band. THAT club will always be successful.

You are completely missing the whole concept of entertainment. And pointing out why I've been so successful. I come from an entertainment background. And since the mid 1990's I've looked at the internet as an audience. An audience that I use everything I know about the ART of entertainment to keep entertained.

You on the other hand are trying to use a cold analysis that has already been done a million times by guys smarter than both of us...and they failed too.

There is more to the human psyche and sexuality than 99% of the folks trying to push porn take into account. It's a lot more complicated than that.

melissa you are flat wrong when you assert everything has been done. Creative people take a vanilla flavor & add their own herbs & spices to make something that stands out. My favorite producer, Buttman, makes the same videos as 100 other studios. but the way he shoots makes his porn unique & successful. the fact is, there will never be a ceiling on what can be done in entertainment.

I'm no longer in the adult industry anymore, although I was for 7 years. Got out in 2002, when times were just about to change (ie 2257 and CAN-SPAM). So I know a lot has changed, but then again, it really hasn't, so maybe that's also the problem?

I spent years missing the adult industry for one reason... IT WAS SO EASY TO MAKE MONEY. GOBS OF IT TOO! Because lets face it, you guys had it soooo easy. Money was just growing off of small bushes at knee level. The adult industry is the reason why many other mainstream industries exist today, and are thriving too. The adult industry just sorta got lazy and sloppy I guess. The innovations and creativity slowed down a lot. But you guys also made a huge mistake, instead of killing off those annoying TGP/MGP's you embraced it.

However yes, the tube sites did come and they are the reason why your industry is down more than 40% for the first time in the history of the world. But without turning this into a huge post, you guys are in ADULT, you're the fucking innovators!

There are still SO MANY ways to bank off of adult. It may not be as easy as it once was, but holy shit, its still a hell of a lot easier and cheaper than mainstream stuff. I still write down ideas for traffic/cash generating to this day, probably out of habit, but also partially because of how my mind works. If I can do it, you can do it 500x better and more often.

But alas, all is not lost because even if with all of the free porn that the tube sites hand out, there are always going to still be people who are just fine with paying for porn. So maybe you should make it more expensive instead of cheaper? I mean, if they're going to pay, why not make a bit more on it? But you guys would know better than me about that.

No need to give up and raise the white flag in defeat, just wait until the dust settles and as things quiet down, then people will get crackin at being creative and innovative again I bet. :thumbsup

Point taken but allow me to counter. Say the same clubs that all look and offered the same were free. Now which do you think most club goers would go to, the free one or the one that actually costs?

Of course there is more to the human psyche but let's face it, the fantasy is played out. Just like you said, the Rolling Stones are an experience. Its what this industry lacks is it not?

Users of pornography like the relationship to progress. Having choices breeds the desire for more choices. Look at restaurants, an excellent model for consumer choosing patterns. Food is a basic need, as is sexual gratification. It can be the basis of addiction. The desire for variety is learned; therefore, the same old methods won't work. Consumers have a taste for variety, reality, and the excitement of the potential for innovation. The basic framework, the delivery of gratification, won't change. The ability to serve variety, innovation, and harness the creative process with new mediums will mean that there will always be a market.

All that said - 3D delivery would do it. One of you geniuses work that up.

No. If you follow the b.s. that you read out of porn valley you start to believe what they want you to...that they ARE the industry.

The truth is they are far from it. You have guys shooting the 4 corners of this earth. The fantasy is never played out.

If it were there wouldn't be any television shows or hollywood movies as they are all telling the same stories over and over.

It's called the Cult Of Personality. I'll go see movies with certain actors in them just because I KNOW they will be good.

You're still missing that.

And yeah...those 999 clubs could have Rolling Stones cover bands and no cover charge, and that ONE club with the actual Rolling Stones could charge $100 a head. Same songs, same drinks, same bar chairs and stools. But the difference is pretty damn obvious.

It's the same here. You have thousands of generic sites outsourcing and buying content and they end up with the same girls who look "hot" doing all the scenes. And those girls shoot for every site.

They get those gigs for the most part because they are easy to work with for the shooters. And when you have to shoot several scenes a day for different companies that becomes important. Get 'em in, get all the positions, and get the cumshot with as little hassle as possible. I understand that. It is an assembly line mentality.

But NONE of those girls have ever been able to pull of their own site and make it successful. Many big companies have tried. But those girls just don't have "it".

But when you get people shooting and treating it like a labor of love with girls that truly have the "it" factor...it's as different as night and day.

I can think of 5 girls that fit that to the "t" and they are very successful and when you watch their vids they are NOTHING like what is churned out at Brazzers or N.A. or Nasty Dollars/Reality Kings

It's just a completely different vibe. And the fans LOVE it. You have no experience in this business, and maybe that's a good thing. But to me, I can be doing this or selling cars...it doesn't matter. The same concept of "entertainment" works everytime to entertain and sell people on an experience.

well said rob