DVD sales are down, and Hollywood is freaking out. Apparently the porn side of the entertainment industry is feeling the hurt as well. According to the Financial Times (3/9/2007), spending on DVDs in 2006 fell more than 15% after a decade of double-digit growth (AVN statistic).
Meanwhile, online piracy has proved a persistent headache for entertainment companies, mainstream and adult alike (see CNet article).
The solution to both problems may be in new streaming and On Demand technologies. The customization allowed by both technologies is key. In a live feed model in the online adult sector, subscribers can instant message requests to models, who then perform as instructed There is a bit of a lag between the request and the performance, but as technology improves this latency continues to shrink.
On Demand has been a centerpiece of innovation within the industry for a few years now--it allows users instant access to customized content available at the click of a remote (or mouse, as the case may be). Some brick and mortar video stores are experimenting with burning On Demand content for customers as they browse in the store. It's unclear as yet whether this will catch on.
Both models are highly adaptable for the mainstream industry, particularly the On Demand model. Maybe Hollywood will finally pipe down about YouTube and Limewire's supposed destruction of all creativity and profit-making in the universe. As porn is once again demonstrating, times are changing and an innovative shift in business models is going to be necessary to stay alive.
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