Oracle of Delphi

The Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation estimates that in an average year the adult entertainment industry — which is headquartered primarily in Southern California — registers total sales of $12.6 billion. Recently Larry Flynt, head of the Hustler empire, and Joe Francis, the man behind the “Girls Gone Wild” series, requested a $5 billion bailout from Congress. Is it that bad out there? The rest of the nation is reeling from a severe economic downturn. Yet the conventional wisdom about the adult entertainment business is that it is recession-proof. And that thinking is consistent with the behavior of mainstream Hollywood. In times of economic difficulty throughout history — even during the Great Depression — people still found the relatively small sums of money to pay for movies and keep their spirits up. This time in the adult industry, though, it may be different, partly because of the current conditions and partly because of the drift by consumers toward new options. “They are definitely struggling,” said Jack Kyser, an economist with the LACEDC. “They are subject to piracy like the mainstream industry is, and that siphons revenue away. Then there are a lot of amateurs in the online industry, which is growing rapidly, and they don’t charge for it. “The industry is really seeing a change in their business model.” AVN Media Network, the most prominent overseer of the business, publishes trade publications for the adult entertainment industry and puts on trade shows. Paul Fishbein, chairman of AVN, is entering his 27th year in the business, “and this is the first time I can honestly say the adult business is not recession-proof.” “Everybody I’m talking to says the business is down anywhere from 20 to 30 percent,” he explained. “That’s in line with the rest of the economy. People in the retail sector are down anywhere from 10 to 40 percent.” Why buy the cow ... While the recession has something to do with it, Fishbein said, the availability of cheaply made adult fare online is cutting into the cash flow for traditional outlets and establishments. “There’s enough free porn on the Internet that, if you don’t care about quality, you can get what you want,” Fishbein said. “Plus the DVD business put out 13,000 new releases last year. That’s just too much. “There’s too much stuff out there. The economy is bad. And there is a lot of free porn. So it’s a perfect storm that is affecting everybody’s business.” Yet two of the more notable names in adult entertainment seem to be weathering that tempest at least adequately, for the time being. Even though Francis joined with Flynt in asking Congress for a handout — whether jokingly, half-jokingly, seriously, or all of the above — he is comforted by the fact that “Girls Gone Wild” is a recognized brand with an ardent following. “We offer reality product. We don’t do hardcore,” he said. “We’re heavily advertised. There’s a comfort zone in choosing ‘Girls Gone Wild.’ We’re No. 1 in all categories.” Francis’ operation benefits from the fact that it doesn’t have to pay actresses, or only on rare occasions. Low overhead, more profit. Also, “Girls Gone Wild” can be sold in retail outlets that won’t sell hardcore pornography, another advantage. What Francis is more upset about than the current economy is the frequent pirating that occurs with his product. “We’re facing what the music business faced a few years ago,” he said. “These sites are stealing our content. We want copyright laws enforced.” Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28737244/

That's an odd reply, been spending your Euros I see. Captain Hook

Nope, that was yesterday where I am.

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It must be important that it's Authentic Jamaican cock too ...

Hey Ted, I don't know if you know this, but there seems to be a lot of people speaking French there ...

Our lives parallel in many ways, I too went to GM fresh from college. I also lived in a small town outside a major metropolitan area, which I still call home. He is 40, I'm 39. Unlike him though, I don't have lamb chop sideburns. Doesn't Dave know sideburns are out, and unibrows are in? On a serious note, I really enjoyed the article.

Lutz says more than his prayers, the end of 2010 can't come soon enough for me ...

Happy Birthday gentlemen!

All that holds the GM badge on is some adhesive.

A pic is worth a thousand words ...

Ditto!

OK, I voted BMW 3 series, because if I couldn't get the GM vehicle I wanted, I would default to BMW. However I would need at least the 5 Series, because of the wife, teenager and my beagle. So now you have my vote.

You do know that a janitor position within GM is a higher level than an assembly line worker? To be a GM janitor, you must 1st work on the assembly line.

The front looks like something the Joker would drive in Batman. Strangely though I like it.

Why are you picking on me? Oddly our taste in 60's & 70's cars is very similar, however as for the future, it's too hard to tell, there are to many variables at this point in time.

English is not my 1st language.

So I take it you work at the North Carolina Welcome Center?

Don't hate!

Bag

Who's pole did you smoke?

OK. I'll pretend. Oh what could it be, what could it be! :AH-HA_wink:

Animals know!

Speaking of chrome, you should read this: http://www.cheersandgears.com/index.php?sh...c=27860&hl=