After breakfast, the Forum’s ambitious slate of workshops and educational seminars kicked into high gear.
First up was the "Cover Your 'Ass'ets" panel moderated by XBIZ Publisher Tom Hymes. Broad topics discussed included the defeat of both .XXX and COPA, 2257 inspections, copyright issues and the importance of contracts.
Noted industry lawyers Lou Sirkin, J.D. Obenberger, Eric Bernstein, Lincoln Bandlow and Chad Bellville served on the panel. It was Obenberger, and Sirkin especially, who drew the rapt attention of attendees during passionate monologues on the 1st Amendment’s protections of adult content.
Obenberger talked about a four-point test that every webmaster must apply to every picture and video that appears on their sites: Do I have the required 2257 documentation? Is the publishing of this content likely to get me indicted for obscenity? Do I legally hold the copyright to this work? Do I have the legal rights to publicity?
“YNOT” Bob Rice moderated the day’s second seminar, "High Risk Billing." Panelists shared inside information from the billing companies’ perspective on the nuts and bolts of maintaining and managing high-risk adult accounts.
Jake Powers (CC Bill), Jeff Thaler (Epoch), Karen Campbell (Netbilling), Kevin Blatt (Pure Vanilla), Rafael Berkein (2000Charge), Daniel Ahearn (365 Billing) and Lee Falls (Elektracash) discussed payment processing basics, including credit card regulations and how they work, insider insight on Internet fraud and liability, as well as tips on how to open up merchant accounts.
Arguably the event’s most anticipated seminar was "Networking for Your Bottom Line" with Keith Ferrazzi. A standing-room-only crowd listened intently to Ferrazzi’s presentation on how to better build successful business relationships and how to present an aura of approachability.
“The one thing I noticed in listening to the conversations in the courtyard was that many of you are finding it hard to differentiate your products in a crowded marketplace,” Ferrazzi said. “But the one thing you can’t duplicate are relationships. The best business relationships are also personal ones, too.”
The Yale- and Harvard-educated Ferrazzi asked the crowd if they really derived joy from their jobs, and when seemingly everyone responded with a resounding "yes," Ferrazzi responded, “That’s fuckin' awesome!” The crowd laughed heartily in reply. This exchange then prompted Ferrazzi to reveal that he got fired from J.P. Morgan after saying “fuck.”
Partygoers had a plethora of networking opportunities to choose from after the seminars concluded. "Networking Zen: Strategies in Motion" kicked off right after Ferrazzi’s keynote, followed by the gay webmaster event "Meat in Heat" sponsored by CCBill. Other parties to come include the PimpRoll Party at Suite 301 and Hooters Happy Hour sponsored by JustBlowMe.com.
Late-night jetsetters have three choices to party beginning at 1 a.m. Allure Cash is holding an event in the hotel’s Cloister Room, TopBucks/PluginFeeds has its Bringing Sexy Back Splash Bash poolside and Mansites/Pridebucks is sponsoring a late-night suite party for gay webmasters.