Sup M-dog hope you are doing well. :thumbsup

Retain my PR services- and I will drive more traffic your way than you know what to do with , with the right marketing angle/ idea

KB, suck my balls.

hit me up on ICQ so we can talk.

Very well said Steve.

Steve well said.

You have always been good to me. If you need anything just ask.

Steve, since I started back in 96 I've noticed that some chose to act like Players and only had time for webmasters who could send them joins or were part of some bigshot players club. But I've also seen people like yourself Steve that despite how successful they got always had time for newbies and small business webmasters and treated everyone with respect. I'm not sure what you have to apologize for really. I think you've always bee a real class act. I look forward to finding ways to do business together and in general be supportive and helpful to one another. People have always grown bigger and made more money by trading links, sharing tips and advice and networking with each other. Maybe it's oldschool I don't know but I do know this, treating people big or small, rich or poor with respect and kindness not only enriches ones bank account but also one's soul.

Stay happy n healthy Steve!
Joe

Is there any money attached?

Great post Steve :thumbsup

Kind words champ. It brought a tear to my eye.

Fiddy New Leafs Waiting to be Turned Over.

Cheeseburgers for everybody!

Was gonna say fifty group hugs. :1orglaugh

Hopefully those people who think they are "players" now realize that nothing is forever. Things change constantly and either you listen to EVERYTHING people have to say or you fail, eventually. Business, politics, religion, relationships etc., its all the same. You should always listen to what others have to say, research for yourself and form your own opinion. If you don't you are just a fool.

I hope whatever epiphany you had helps.

I think it was "Our industry is the only industry that PAYS itself to KILL itself."

Working together to innovate and recreate... couldn't have put it better Steve

Maybe AVN should step to the plate and make the same statement.

working together?

b a h a h a h a h a h a h a h a h a h a

how old are you dj the kid? 17, 18 tops? you will learn very quickly about that in this biz.

...and some just cant leave the party.

Great words from a great man! I heart Steve Lightspeed

Why leave the party when I have the party favors?
I'm THAT guy in the bathroom with the GOOD SHIT.

Steve's bought me dinner more than once but ALWAYS at Denny's! I think it's his favorite place or something.

Contacting you on ICQ... I have something new that may interest you.

Nice post btw ;)

A little anecdotal analogy:

Back in the late 70s my aunt & uncle got involved in the ceramic industry when it first began to gain popularity - starting out as a family hobby at first and then gradually expanded it to become one of the largest ceramic retailers in Toronto (at the time) - with a coast-to-coast catalogue operation and ceramic kiln sales as a sideline. They became the go-to people for folks jumping into the ceramic hobby.

As they expanded, so did their personal spending. Nice cars, a lavish condominium in an upscale area in the suburbs, a big yacht, vacations in the Caribbean and exotic hotspots...etc, etc. On the surface they appeared to be the beacon of success and all the relatives were proud of their accomplishments. They'd taken a gamble, worked hard, invested all their savings...and it appeared to be paying off nicely.

Unfortunately, they didn't seem willing to admit (or understand) that ceramics was a fad hobby - the pet rock or Rubik's Cube of its era. In an effort to maintain the illusion of success, their spending remained excessive and unchecked while public interest in doing ceramics waned dramatically. By the time the bubble finally burst in the mid 80s, they were in debt up to their eyeballs with financial commitments they couldn't handle.

As you can imagine, one thing led to another and they shut their retail doors with little notice and temporarily vanished...leaving a lot of angry creditors on the hook for their debts.

I see an aspect of that happening again today in the adult entertainment industry. Not to say that porn is a fad, of course...we all know different. But the business model is changing, the ground rules have grown fuzzy - and everyone's scrambling to figure out where we've all gone wrong.

I'm dismayed when I see producer and webmaster colleagues who I've gotten to know and grown to respect over the years suddenly throw in the towel and halt operations. It's unsettling to see people who I thought were examples of innovative ideas and good business practices vanish with little more than a whimper.

I wish I had more answers to the dilemma.

Very well said!

Hey Steve....

Your post was sincere and I truly understand your thoughts and I applaud your new commitment to the tasks at hand.

With that said, however, I dont think you give yourself enough credit for what you built. I fondly recall a dinner that I had with 5 or 6 of the biggest "HAVES" in our industry (I think it was like January of 2002) and I said to them "You guys are sitting here on your high horses like you are invincible and the Steve Lightspeed's of the world are working their asses off and are going to take over what you have built" (yes, I used your name specifically). Each of them looked at me like I was crazy and just laughed at me....which was indirectly laughing at you....but you proved them wrong....you built a large program that took away their business. They went through the same thing that you are going through now (sinking sales, etc) but they did it in 2003 and 2004 and only a couple of those guys are even around anymore and none are as dominating.

Those "HAVES" didnt give you anything....you busted your ass and you got what you worked for.....the problems with the "WANTS" now is that they do not have the same dedication and drive as you did back then. They came into the industry at a time where programs were giving them everything they needed to make money and holding their hands as they did. I think that is what stifled creativity more than any "big boys club".

Of course, this is just one mans opinion.


--T

Excellent thread Steve!

The "Haves"and the "Wants", well written.

I am humbled too. So I now will change my Players Ball to the "Wanters Ball"

I'm definitely in the "Wants" crowd.

Great Post Steve

praise the lord!

:2 cents:

Make that two. My first industry show was a [cybernet] thing in Vegas. I went to a seminar and of the people on the panel, the only one I recall at the moment was Steve. I had no idea who he was at the time.

He made quite the impression. I believe the statement, "your biggest competitor is your biggest asset" was what made me pay close attention to that guy.

sadly, there area a lot of those people..:(

but that has never stopped me in my tracks. :pimp

Will my Player's card still work at Wanter's Ball? :winkwink:

Steve, were the stats you posted fake? You may as well be honest at this point.

They seemed to disappear from here pretty quickly.

Reading that thread made me feel honored in knowing that I can call you a friend.

It was a real screenshot. A glitch in the Lightspeed4 backend combined our actuals into one big day. I thought it was funny, so I posted it, and said "I did it without anyone's help", (which was actually true).

Also, we don't have alot of big affiliates right now either. Most of our best affiliates (except a couple) have moved to selling prepaid ads now, so we can't really count them as "affiliates". If we did, the top 100 chart would look much different.

As far as the new car... buying a new car after 9 years of the old one isn't exactly "balling". Its a nice car, and it has a matching nice payment schedule. But I spent more money on the Phoenix Forum this year that on the new car.

Anyone else ready to admit their ego causes them to exaggerate here and there? Step up. As I said, I'm putting mine away now.

in jerry mcquire this is your mission statement..lol

nice words though man...be good to get some organization and go after and out people actually hurting the business

Some very valid points in this thread.

I like the initiative, Steve.

In a thread filled with humility, honesty and a calling to unite as an industry whole, you post the most egotistical garbage spam possible, congrats.

Kudos Steve! How many people are this open about where there life is?

My friends have pointed out that I didn't sell porn prior to 2003 and maybe in 2010 I should find something new. It is possible that by holding on to this business i am missing other markets that are not in decline.