The panel was comprised of VS Media President Gregory Clayman, LFP President Michael Klein, Brickhouse Mobile President Clinton Fayling, ClubJenna President Jay Grdina and investment firm AdultVest founder Francis Koenig. AVN Online publisher Farley Cahen started the ball rolling by asking how each company representative has used technology to reach a broader fan base and combat the effects of piracy of both online and offline content.
Using new media platforms, including branching into the mobile market with .mobi and WAP sites as well as burn-to-DVD programs, was a hot topic among the panelists. Both Clayman and Fayling touted the fact that the U.S. has far to go before mobile adult can become a reality — due mostly to the lack of mobile child verification systems — and that more "PG" content currently is as far as the industry can go.
Clayman mentioned an upcoming Video Secrets burn-to-own feature that will allow the user to step into the director's shoes by choosing what content he wants to purchase and then arranging it to burn on his own DVD. It's another way, he said, to give the end user what he wants.
Making content available on as many direct-to-consumer platforms and in as many formats as possible, as well as choosing affiliates and marketing ploy wisely, was recommended by the panel. Clayman and Klein agreed that quality is more important than quantity, and to work with methods that will attract new members, not just click traffic.
All on the panel agreed that the adult industry is leading the mainstream in technology use, embracing new and innovative marketing and distribution techniques. Grdina said he is never afraid to scoop up anything new he thinks will be successful in expanding his company, something Clayman emphasized when he reminded the audience that a company can't stay on top with a big brand name alone.
Clayman also discussed the most significant difference between the way adult and mainstream do business — collaboration vs. competition. Unlike Hollywood, adult companies work together to get as many dollars out of consumers as possible; when new technology develops, Grdina said, he won't hoard and hide it from other adult companies. The best way to benefit — and profit — is to share it and use it together.
The attending crowd may have appeared modest at first glance, but Clayman noted that there were many unfamiliar faces in the audience taking advantage of the panel's knowledge, and said he was glad to see a crowd from nonadult companies larger than those he's seen at past adult seminars at Digital Hollywood.
