View Full Version : Sony's Adult-Video Decision Stands Up
toallyrocks
01-25-2007, 20:08
Technology
Sony's Adult-Video Decision Stands Up
By Priya Ganapati (http://apps.thestreet.com/cms/email/tscEmailStory.do?storyId=10334843&authorId=1106747&storyUrl=/newsanalysis/techgames/10334843.html)
TheStreet.com Staff Reporter
1/25/2007 1:46 PM EST
URL: http://www.thestreet.com/newsanalysis/techgames/10334843.html (http://www.thestreet.com/newsanalysis/techgames/10334843.html)
Some tech urban legends are hard to dispel.
Years ago, it was thought the lack of support from adult-entertainment content producers toward Betamax was the reason why Sony (SNE) lost the video format wars in the 1980s.
It's true that Sony didn't work with adult content producers, and the Betamax standard certainly was wiped out by VHS. But that's doesn't necessarily cement a cause-and-effect relationship.
However, a similar causation theory has been recently making the rounds that the adult-film industry will drive the next-generation DVD battle between the Blu-ray and HD-DVD formats. And the idea has seemed to gain some credibility because of Sony's refusal to work with the adult entertainment industry.
So does that mean the Sony-backed Blu-ray standard will go the way of Betamax?
Not likely. This time around, Sony could be making the right moves.
The Internet changed the way adult content is viewed and delivered, and what's more, by taking the moral high ground Sony may actually be securing Blu-ray's future.
Sony has received much recent flak for its decision to not work with adult-content producers. While it hasn't said it won't allow adult-entertainment content on the Blu-ray format, it has damned content producers by not cooperating.
Its disc-replicating subsidiary, Sony DADC Global, won't handle adult-film titles, and that forces producers to find another way to reproduce their content in bulk onto Blu-ray discs.
But even if many of those producers move to HD DVD, here's why it won't really matter:
In the 1980s, tapes and the neighborhood video rental store were probably the only way to get to adult content. Now much of it is viewed online. The Internet has made it easy and anonymous to get access to movies that are too embarrassing to request in person.
While Blu-ray or HD DVD may offer greater clarity, the big question is, how much does the average viewer want to sacrifice Internet anonymity for the pleasure of walking into a seedy video store in person to rent a hi-def disc?
There's another reason why Sony could be doing the right thing. The company also needs to protect its PlayStation franchise. Sony has tied the fate of its PlayStation franchise to its bet on the Blu-ray standard. Without the Blu-ray disc player, its PlayStation 3 video-game console would be a lot cheaper. At the same time, the consoles are the primary delivery vehicle for the Blu-ray players.
"Sony is trying to demonstrate they care about the home environment and what type of content can be played on a PlayStation 3," says Jon Peddie, president of Jon Peddie Research. "Its kind of patronizing that they would do such a thing, but it will appeal to parents who worry about their kids playing video games and what kind of content is available to them."
And Sony's public announcements notwithstanding, it isn't completely giving up on the adult-entertainment industry. The Sony-backed Blu-ray Disc Association is trying to broker peace.
"There is not a prohibition against adult content within the Blu-ray Disc Association," said Marty Gordon, vice chair of the BDA U.S. Promotions Committee and vice president of Philips Electronics' (PHG) Hollywood Office. "The BDA is an open organization that welcomes the participation of all companies interested in using and supporting the format, including those that represent the full spectrum of genres in the content industry."
This way, Sony gets to have its cake and eat it too. Sony can continue to publicly not support Blu-ray but hope that the Blu-ray lobbying group can work out a better relationship with adult-content producers.
It's also worth remembering that what really won the day for VHS were cost, recording time and licensing issues with Sony.
Betamax tapes could record content for about 60 minutes, while VHS tapes were three hours long. While bulkier, VHS tapes were perfect for recording movies, and the industry took to them.
VHS tapes were also cheaper to produce -- they cost less than half of what it took with Betamax. When adult-entertainment producers opted for VHS, they signaled the winner in a battle whose conclusion seemed clear.
As with the videotape standoff, whichever DVD format consumers deem as the most user-friendly will ultimately take the commanding lead; the adult film industry will follow the leader.
I personally think that sony has made a right decison.
Ravenlocke
01-26-2007, 03:53
The new "Debbie does Dallas" from Vivid is confirmed for bluray release. The whole thing is just bunk. Its just porn. Who really cares these days other then soccer moms?
danman227460
01-29-2007, 20:14
Its the wholesome image Sony has carved for themselves over the years, it stems back to the Betamax days and their decision to stop porn being on it. Its just the way it is besides porn is MUCH easier to find online and even 12 year olds can get into it by accident. Besides its also CHEAPER :D.
chaplin_bage
01-29-2007, 20:17
Its the wholesome image Sony has carved for themselves over the years, it stems back to the Betamax days and their decision to stop porn being on it. Its just the way it is besides porn is MUCH easier to find online and even 12 year olds can get into it by accident. Besides its also CHEAPER :D.
stop tell everyone! they will know our secret! shhhhh!
theshadow1234
01-29-2007, 20:37
I don't care to much about the Porn thingy on BluRay..It's the movies that really stand out..Anyway, I can't watch anyway with the kids around.
danman227460
01-29-2007, 22:49
stop tell everyone! they will know our secret! shhhhh!
Lol, its not really a secret. Everyone should know and if they do not, then they need to get out from under that rock.
About the stuff on blu ray:
I mean COME ON, imagine 1080p on a 42" TV in 7.1 surround sound. That should rise some eyebrows in the neighbourhood.
Why are we putting up old arguements when people can search a thread a page down and add?
Sony didn't ban Adult entertainment, it just wasn't warm to it. Manufacturers don't want any "contaminations" and there are even clauses in contracts that prohibit say a Disney line to be with the same as Adult line.
You don't want to be assoicated both by the media or by mistake.
Anyone remember the Madden 360 game that some kid brought but got turned out to be a AV DVD? Will that's a heck of a liable suit.
Sony has always and will always keep it's hands clean of AV(in the media anyway) so when Groups asked sony to help them press BDs, they got the boot.
Now it's not all Adult Video's fault. There are very little BD manufacuring plants out there as oppose to HD DVD(upgraded DVD pressers). So it's not easy to pay for a place that'll take you in.
But really this whole mess was the AV people wanted the cake and eat it too. Sometimes you can, sometimes you can't
tac0tac0
01-30-2007, 09:31
Its the wholesome image Sony has carved for themselves over the years, it stems back to the Betamax days and their decision to stop porn being on it. Its just the way it is besides porn is MUCH easier to find online and even 12 year olds can get into it by accident. Besides its also CHEAPER :D.
i agree. people have forgotten that the internet has become the mainstream medium for porn . i very much doubt that porn on either blu-ray or hd dvd will do very well. why buy porn (especially at 30+ dollars? a disc) when you can dl it for free? hypothetically, if porn was generally accepted around the world, i would think that it would be much more profitable if it were available through e-distribution. it would cut costs drastically for the consumer, and we'd still be able to enjoy it in hd.
i agree. people have forgotten that the internet has become the mainstream medium for porn . i very much doubt that porn on either blu-ray or hd dvd will do very well. why buy porn (especially at 30+ dollars? a disc) when you can dl it for free? hypothetically, if porn was generally accepted around the world, i would think that it would be much more profitable if it were available through e-distribution. it would cut costs drastically for the consumer, and we'd still be able to enjoy it in hd.
tru dat son. but can you imagine how frustrated your sausage will be waiting for that ish to download in hd?
Lol, its not really a secret. Everyone should know and if they do not, then they need to get out from under that rock.
About the stuff on blu ray:
I mean COME ON, imagine 1080p on a 42" TV in 7.1 surround sound. That should rise some eyebrows in the neighbourhood.Yeah it has been more apparent for minors online, heck their are so many ways of getting free adult material.
And about 7.1 Surround Sound your neighbors would be missing out j/k lol.:shock:
XXYoungJinXX
01-30-2007, 09:58
It'll be fine, I'm sure somehow the AV industry will find its way to the BRD players. Besides, how much more revolutionary can you get with the BRD compared to the DVD? Sure it'll probably have a clearer picture, better sound or what not, but its not like its gonna do a virtual reality thing right on your couch. The closest thing to a new chapter for the AV films is the use with the wii which has been brought up before. Of course those games will probably only stay in Japan haha =P. Gotta love those crazy guys there.
I read before the gap between costs of BRD and HD is getting closer and closer as the days go on. If this continues (and if the article is valid, sry I dunno where I found it) then Sony is just banking that their system with the blue ray will win out. Technology doesn't evolve w/o its shares of risks. DVD's weren't accepted right away and hell expensive, now practically EVERYONE has one even built in with their comps/laptops.
Think about it though, do you really want to see your pr0n in high def? Most of the "actors" don't need any more clarity in their apperance.
Why do people believe there is no porn on BluRay still?
coffeerox
06-07-2007, 15:01
btw the article written was a piece of garbage. a lot of times i had to re-read and replace words in my mind because it was so poorly written. Even one statement got me questioning
This way, Sony gets to have its cake and eat it too. Sony can continue to publicly not support Blu-ray but hope that the Blu-ray lobbying group can work out a better relationship with adult-content producers. Why wouldn't they publically NOT support blu-ray??? It's their own friggin disc format.....
Anyways on topic, porn on DVD is fine by me. I don't know about seeing porn on Bluray, I mean that would make the girls look a lot better but why change what's already good? I'm still watching regular definition videos on my TV and it doesnt need to get any better than that. I appreciate the extra definition for movies, but for porn, where it's at is where I'm comfortable with.
The new "Debbie does Dallas" from Vivid is confirmed for bluray release. The whole thing is just bunk. Its just porn. Who really cares these days other then soccer moms?
crappy movie by the way. Intro girl is hot, but gets killed off shortly after her scene. Lacie does not perform whatsoever (wtf were they thinking????) that CUUUTE brunette never performs (as does many of the hot ass chicks they show you)
^^^^ It doesn't matter what you say, this thread is from January.
Stop with bumping old threads people.
Wearevenom1
06-07-2007, 15:09
Man the thought of high definition porn is quite humorous to me. I mean do people really need to watch others having sex in full 1080p? I mean for normal movies sure you sit down and enjoy the quality but for the purpose most people that buy porn buy it for I don't think HD really matters. Anyway the internet has changed the situation any how and I have seen DVD porn before that looked like it was less than VHS quality so whatever.
HellsJester
06-07-2007, 15:14
Too many porn stars are ugly enough without the HD.
HD isnt for porn.
Hentai in HD might work though.
coffeerox
06-07-2007, 15:24
^^^^ It doesn't matter what you say, this thread is from January.
Stop with bumping old threads people.
god I hate replying to lamers. Look I replied because there was new replies. If you notice Its my first post here. #1 you can't tell people what to do and #2, if theres going to be a new discussion then theres going to be new replies. Use your freakin brain.
And yes it does matter what I say. It's like me saying your comment doesn't matter. Wouldn't you like your opinion to matter? Sure you would. So stop saying such stupid things and maybe someone will listen to what you have to say.
Man the thought of high definition porn is quite humorous to me. I mean do people really need to watch others having sex in full 1080p? I mean for normal movies sure you sit down and enjoy the quality but for the purpose most people that buy porn buy it for I don't think HD really matters. Anyway the internet has changed the situation any how and I have seen DVD porn before that looked like it was less than VHS quality so whatever.
Just keep thinking back to VHS > DVD and you'll understand (or will you?) My only gripe is that it's not too big of a difference (or that big of a difference isn't really needed) DVD porn that looks like VHS quality are compliations and are VHS transfers. Porn industry is really the only industry that does this.
Too many porn stars are ugly enough without the HD.
HD isnt for porn.
Hentai in HD might work though.
what? You're insane. I can make a pretty nice list of women you only wish you could get with (that looks both good with/without makeup) Although I agree, HD isn't for porn. I also disagree, Hentai will not work in HD. Reason being? Anime itself is good at 640x480 up until DVD res 720x480. Theres less compression artifacts and since theres virtually no detail (not like real-life) because it's animation, not much needs to be done to it until the picture itself gets so sharp and clear that you will start to see jagged edges. I mean damn I already see jagged edges on my SDTV for Anime, think about how much worse it's going to be for HD. No. Anime does not work in HD. Although why I would buy on HD formats is for the space that they may/may not utilize. I can only dream of box sets on one or two discs.
HellsJester
06-07-2007, 15:35
what? You're insane. I can make a pretty nice list of women you only wish you could get with (that looks both good with/without makeup) Although I agree, HD isn't for porn. I also disagree, Hentai will not work in HD. Reason being? Anime itself is good at 640x480 up until DVD res 720x480. Theres less compression artifacts and since theres virtually no detail (not like real-life) because it's animation, not much needs to be done to it until the picture itself gets so sharp and clear that you will start to see jagged edges. I mean damn I already see jagged edges on my SDTV for Anime, think about how much worse it's going to be for HD. No. Anime does not work in HD. Although why I would buy on HD formats is for the space that they may/may not utilize. I can only dream of box sets on one or two discs.
I doubt it i have a very weird taste in women and most of the time i think girls who others think are really hot i think they are ugly.
Didnt know about the anime thing thanks for the info.
I have seen very little porn anyway so my opinion doesnt really matter.
porn WAS important back in that era... the only other way to get it was to go to a theater... try rubbing one out with 40 other men in a dark, smokey theater, not to mention, god forbid someone sees you coming out of one of those places... VHS made porn more accessable to the private audience, and studios went for it and thus it won... now you can get porn with by typing any kind of porn reference in google... history will not repeat itself here, if anything, most people will just stream their porn using DLNA devices. blu-ray will "win" because this isn't a war... there's just a snobby little kid who won't give up, and probably won't ever.
SnakeDevil
06-07-2007, 17:44
Who actually pays for porn?
i would pay for HI-DEF Jenna Haze... sweet DP baby!!!
Why do people keep saying internet porn is free? I never saw anything good on there that didn't cost something. Unless you mean pirated stuff.
Why do people keep saying internet porn is free? I never saw anything good on there that didn't cost something. Unless you mean pirated stuff. Just like music on the internet is free. They're all readily available for illegal downloading. Though, I'm not sure if I really want to see porn in Full HD.
Just like music on the internet is free. They're all readily available for illegal downloading. Though, I'm not sure if I really want to see porn in Full HD.
That doesn't mean its free. Just means you're stealing it.
Just like music on the internet is free. They're all readily available for illegal downloading. Though, I'm not sure if I really want to see porn in Full HD.
what, you don't wanna see Peter North spoodge some hot chick in full 1080p with uncompressed PCM in 7.1???? it would almost have to come with a towel or something... man... that would be one huge wang on my new 52 inch bravia
KingJebus
06-07-2007, 20:28
i don't know about you guys...but i don't want to watch porn in hi-def.
what, you don't wanna see Peter North spoodge some hot chick in full 1080p with uncompressed PCM in 7.1???? it would almost have to come with a towel or something... man... that would be one huge wang on my new 52 inch bravia
Jeez, dude. Thats not the part I was looking forward to.
Wearevenom1
06-07-2007, 20:33
god I hate replying to lamers. Look I replied because there was new replies. If you notice Its my first post here. #1 you can't tell people what to do and #2, if theres going to be a new discussion then theres going to be new replies. Use your freakin brain.
And yes it does matter what I say. It's like me saying your comment doesn't matter. Wouldn't you like your opinion to matter? Sure you would. So stop saying such stupid things and maybe someone will listen to what you have to say.
Just keep thinking back to VHS > DVD and you'll understand (or will you?) My only gripe is that it's not too big of a difference (or that big of a difference isn't really needed) DVD porn that looks like VHS quality are compliations and are VHS transfers. Porn industry is really the only industry that does this.
what? You're insane. I can make a pretty nice list of women you only wish you could get with (that looks both good with/without makeup) Although I agree, HD isn't for porn. I also disagree, Hentai will not work in HD. Reason being? Anime itself is good at 640x480 up until DVD res 720x480. Theres less compression artifacts and since theres virtually no detail (not like real-life) because it's animation, not much needs to be done to it until the picture itself gets so sharp and clear that you will start to see jagged edges. I mean damn I already see jagged edges on my SDTV for Anime, think about how much worse it's going to be for HD. No. Anime does not work in HD. Although why I would buy on HD formats is for the space that they may/may not utilize. I can only dream of box sets on one or two discs.
No I get it but watching porn in full 1080p isn't why I have a blueray player. It just seems asanine to want porn in HD. **** goes in the ***** rinse and repeat for 40 minutes. I mean I guess the only pro is storage but jeez its porn not some old classic you love and want to see in HD and not some great new movie shot in HD that uses a lot of high tech computer animation.
baccusboy
06-08-2007, 08:52
With devices like this, which can be owned and operated by the porn studios themselves, at a relatively inexpensive price (by comparison), I don't expect the "too expensive for us to use" argument will hold water too long:
http://www.blu-ray.com/news/?id=237
http://www.primera.com/news_bravo_xrp_blu.html
Price: $8,895
makidian
06-08-2007, 20:37
If people are that presses to watch porn in HD and don't want to shell out the big bucks for Blu-Ray porn at least the players scale.
Booneabal
07-03-2007, 13:40
Yeah, I think that feeding kids images of severed heads, entrails, immolation and torture via God of War is far healthier than letting them see consensual adult relationships.
Way to go Sony!!!!
makidian
07-03-2007, 14:01
The new "Debbie does Dallas" from Vivid is confirmed for bluray release. The whole thing is just bunk. Its just porn. Who really cares these days other then soccer moms?
Everyone knows that soccer moms have more porn than anybody....
phranctoast
07-03-2007, 15:28
Yeah, I think that feeding kids images of severed heads, entrails, immolation and torture via God of War is far healthier than letting them see consensual adult relationships.
Way to go Sony!!!!
and the outcry for Janet Jacksons boob. oh no.... the south park episode (fun with weapons) had it right. Its obviouslt not just Sony here, but the US in general. check out gta:sa, with its new rating.
Sony is right in this instance though. They arent preventing porn at all. They just arent making it easy for them. I remember a while back porn being in some disney movies. This happened because the disney movies and th eporn where manufactured in the same place. If i had my say, i wouldnt want my movies being distributed anywhere near porn as well.
All I know is that there better be plenty of porn on Blu-ray or I'm gonna be really upset.
StruggleWithin
07-03-2007, 19:46
There is something about HD porn..won't be able to hide flaws as well..
Wow, some people are nuts. Porn was a huge factor back then, but they didn't have this little thing called the INTERNET back then. The industry isn't as important now is it was back then. Also HD porn? I feeling its one thing that won't take off...