Porn Companies Tackle The Future of Technology

The 2008 Adult Video Network (AVN) show, the Adult Entertainment Expo, held next door to the International CES in Las Vegas, took place at a pivotal time for the adult video industry.

Adult DVD sales are down by as much as 50 percent thanks to free Web sites modeled after YouTube, and many in the industry are looking to high-definition content to command higher unit pricing and prevent piracy.

With Digital Playground's decision to release its titles on Blu-ray and Warner Bros. decision to do the same, I asked some of the other larger adult studios what they saw as the future of optical adult high definition discs.

HD DVD Signage and Demos

On the show floor, it was evident that all the large studios were surprised by the Warner decision. They nearly all had HD DVD demos running and HD DVD signage and titles.

Hustler Video Group creative director Drew Rosenfeld said that, based on the Warner decision, they would be releasing their Barely Legal #75 on Blu-ray. He said that the high cost of Blu-ray authoring and reproduction was the main reason the majority of their catalog had been in the HD DVD format.

All of the executives I spoke to expressed that Blu-ray authoring and duplication was an issue. An representative at NinWorx said that they were not producing any HD discs due to the costs of Blu-ray.

Studios Transitioning to Blu-ray

Adam and Eve Pictures' Bruce Whitley said that his studio currently was shipping four HD DVD titles, but based on the Warner decision, was going to begin to transition to Blu-ray.

Whitley said that the studio was disappointed with Warner's decision and that there are still more than a million HD DVD players in the market that want adult content.

Digital Playground president Samantha Lewis echoed Whitley, saying that Digital Playground would also be making the transition and that public perception is much higher for Blu-ray. The Warner decision, she said, further reinforces the perception that Blu-ray is the better supported format of the two.

Lewis also mentioned that there were more Blu-ray disc authoring and duplication companies approaching her at the show with pricing much closer to HD DVD rates. With costs historically half as much as Blu-ray, she sees this as a good sign for faster adoption of Blu-ray in the adult video marketplace.

VOD Porn Sells 3:1 Over Optical Media

When it comes to acquiring porn, video on demand sells at a 3 to 1 rate compared with optical media, Lewis said.

All of the titles Digital Playground offers are heavily protected with Windows Media DRM technology and require a special Microsoft security patch in order to allow playback.

Although Digital Playgrounds' VOD sales have been strong, Lewis sees the interactive potential that both formats provide as an added selling point and additional revenue stream.

Digital Playground's latest feature, Pirates 2, will be shot in HD digitally on Hollywood quality cameras when filming begins this March. Lewis promises that she and director Joone will take full advantage of all the interactive capabilities that they can fit onto the final Blu-ray version of the film.

Is Piracy Killing the Business?

As rosy of a picture that Digital Playground paints, I found one long-time adult industry director to be downright pessimistic about the future of digital high-definition adult content and the adult industry itself.

Andrew Blake, whose films are known for being highly artistic endeavors often shot in exotic locales, says that his company Studio A Entertainment has been devastated by Internet piracy. He claims he has lost as much as 80 percent of their revenue to piracy in 2007 alone.

Blake, who only shoots on film, said that he is not even going to bother publishing his latest releases on DVD, HD DVD, or Blu-ray because he is convinced that there will always be a way to copy and pirate optical media.

He has decided to only release his new films on his Web site, where he will offer a full 1080p version with heavy Windows Media DRM restrictions. Blake said that he wouldn't have a problem with movies being shared throughout a house using Media Center Extenders, as long as the DRM is kept intact.