We are most dismayed that you find the death of DudeVu to be an occasion for sorrow.
DudeVu was an illegal operation, living entirely off of pirated content. Where do you think that all of its content came from? Do you think that porn studios simply create their films as a public service, and are somehow subsidized by the government?
DudeVu shut down because we told them that we were going to sue them. Not only is the site shut down, but we will pursue its owners until we've bankrupted them, and we will be pursuing even individuals who uploaded our content.
You wouldn't walk into a store and steal a DVD. Why do you think it is acceptable to steal content online? Subscriptions to your favorite sites are not expensive. Pay for it, or don't view it.
Marc J. Randazza
General Counsel
Corbin Fisher
Who knew that my humble blog was on the radar of an executive at a popular porn company (all sarcasm aside, it seems to be a fascinating world... then again, he may have just done a relevant Google search [womp womp])! It just sucked because I couldn't tell anyone in the cube farm why I shrieked at my desk.
I started to respond in the comments section, but as my brain started going, it seemed less appropriate for the comments section. I think this justifies its own post because porn piracy is such a relevant issue for so many people (Oprah had a whole show on porn! OPRAH!). And god knows I'd hate to see a repeat of the music business in any other sector of entertainment.
So here's my response (keep in mind that I have neither a law degree nor a business degree... but I did really well in 100-level econ classes!). Enjoy!
Marc brings up an excellent point: distributing copyrighted material in any context is certainly wrong (I know I get on my friends about downloading music illegally). Marc's comment got my wheels turning.
I'd say none of my friends would steal a DVD from a store, but they might buy a DVD in the subway or in a barber shop for half the price they would find it in a store. Or they would watch one of these DVDs at a friend's house. All of these actions are wrong on some level. The guy who uploads to the website seems analogous to the DVD shoplifter, and the subway buyers and friends who watch seem analogous to the website watchers.
On the other hand, I feel like this type of access, illegal though it may be, has amazing marketing potential because it has exposed future subscribers to brands they may not have considered before. It's one thing to shell out money for a product with which one isn't familiar and another to pay for a product that one has had a chance to sample and confirm that one likes. And god knows gay boys talk about the porn they like!
Studios could work with websites to do a sort of preview/sampling. "We were gonna sue your balls off for illegally distributing our material, but here's what's gonna happen instead. We're gonna give you two of our scenes/movies in full for a week. We're gonna get front and center advertising for this for 2 weeks beforehand and during. For free, of course." The studios could have their copywriters (not copyrighters) make an auto-play spot on the website in question's front page informing members that the studio's brand is no longer available through the site except for this limited offer and end the spot with a discount offer when members subscribe during the preview time.
This spot would effectively highlight the fact that the people looking for that particular studio’s brand can't get it there anymore: they have to get it through the studio. The spot offers members an alternative: a legit sample that will draw them in much more than a :30 trailer would. Additionally, studios would be advertising to other members of the website who may not be familiar with the brand at all.
The studios would still be getting exposure through these websites, but it would be in a way that the studio controls. I would wager their subscriptions/sales would see a spike during and directly after the preview event.
Furthermore, as free content becomes less and less available (through regulation, litigation, or deals like the one described above), people who look for these movies on these websites will get over the principle of paying for porn and actually look at the price, realizing (as Marc pointed out) that subscriptions are not that expensive.
Go go gadget intellectual discourse!
(And by that, I mean, click below to leave a comment... and let's avoid the ad hominem attacks... that's so 2004!)
Click here to check out why I prefer Splash (the club) before 10pm.
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2 comments:
The biz model you described is pretty much exactly what rockettube.com does. Maybe we should start a site like that DK.
I don't wanna be a business man.
I wanna be a business, MAN!
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