Death of the DVD

[kernal sandez]

It doesn`t seem that long ago that there was a constant stream of superb British porn DVDs starring such legends as Alexis Silver, Cathy Barry,LDM,Michelle Thorne etc etc.
Its an absolute tragedy that all this free streaming has wrecked the industry.

[Arginald Valleywater]

Part of the problem is the poor quality of new porn. Fake tits, plastic surgery in their 20s, tattoos and the long drawn out idea that Chav porn is still fashionable. And sooooo unfunny parodies. Doctor Screw etc are drivel.

[rexwantinsex]

I disagree - both Michelle Thorne and Michelle B look fantastic with their "fake" breasts, but there is no decent paying work for them in the UK so there are no DVDs...

I don't get why people seem to think that the death of the DVD is driven entirely by streaming - many of the major Euro/US companies have websites where members can download a video as part of their monthly subscription (not pay per view, or pay per download) and this model has seemingly done the likes of Brazzers/Bangbros/Evil Angel/Penthouse/Jules Jordan etc a lot of good, because they are still releasing daily updates to their sites, whilst at the same time consistently releasing the scenes on DVD

look at Michelle Thorne's site - consistent weekly updates, and she's releasing some DVDs as well (yeah it's the same footage available on her site, but that's no different to what the other producers are doing)

the problem in the UK is that "porn shops" are not accepted into mainstream society - if you're seen going into one by your friends/family, you're viewed as a pervert.... I don't know why British producers don't take advantage of this, and use the internet as either a delivery mechanism (downloadable scenes like Killergram do) or why do British producers not open up a reasonably priced website, similar to yourchoice but where a single DVD doesn't cost more than a TV series box set of 12 discs would in HMV

sorry producers, I know porn is a niche market, but considering high street retailers have to pay the rent etc, surely ?19.99 per DVD is a little OVER the top for a single disc porno don't you think?

[Millzy82]

Blaming piracy and downloads as the sole cause of the decline of the industry is that blinkered argument that could see the UK porn industry suffer even more.

As others have said, a lack of quality content and overpriced packaged media can be blamed just as easily and there's more credence in those arguments. I haven't bought a porn DVD in years because I think they're far too expensive for what they are and that subscriptions to websites offer far better value for money.

ATVOD doesn't help matters either.

[rexwantinsex]

I'm a punter, and I keep repeating myself, but I always seem to feel as though it's falling on ignorant (not deaf) ears.... there's some people on here, like Terry who have their own sites which offer some value for money, but to be fair - there's clearly not a daily update with enough new "content" to compete with the likes of DDF/21Sextury/Killergram etc in Europe

however, the British porn industry seems to have to get around a number of things - TV channel content is all softcore, it's not "as hard" as Euro/American TV porn, yet we have some producers who claim that ATVOD is also preventing them from running a globally recognised website, yet Killergram seems to be surviving in the same marketplace.

perhaps, and this is just a punter's view, but perhaps it's cost? producers will always want as much as possible, yet when you're competing for ? against the $, people wanting a lot of good quality content, for as little as possible, will always choose a site offering a lower value for memberships/subscriptions (something British producers seem to be reluctant to grasp it seems)

where would I rather spend my money? on a $20-30 membership each month, offering HD videos as daily updates with new girls etc? or on a ?30 membership for a site offering weekly updates (sometimes alternating between a photoset and a video) and less "new" talent coming through each week, with little to no name talent offering headline attraction?

my money is on the former.... and unfortunately, that is where UK producers are losing out - I like some British girls who have gone by the wayside from the "networks" and in many cases retired from a lack of industry earnings (Cate Harrington/Vickie Powell/Michelle B etc) and there are still hot girls like Michelle Moist who are around, but are working on webcams rather than for producers, because there's clearly no money there for them in scenes/shoots for production companies - I think this is a major shame, but we are where we are and if producers could get together and set up some content sharing or agree some sort of revenue share with the talent, then maybe there could be a way to come back through the internet and a new way of making a site work for the general industry, but frankly..... I don't see that happening unfortunately, and I think it's a real shame

[ormie23]

I dont think its got anything to do with the industry and fake tits/chavs etc, ive been into two private shops in the last month and both were selling dvds for 30 pounds each, who the hell is gonna pay that when you can get them so much cheaper online, i have no doubt soon there will be no shops it will be like the music industry and HMV in deep trouble,

And yes you can watch and buy porn online cheaper and that will carry on as it costs a lot more to produce a dvd put it out into hundreds and thousands of shops around the world only to sell a few, we all know how many free porn tube sites are and unless they start charging the industy is dying, they need to look at the way the music industry is and quick, because soon porn girls will be having to work for less and less money

[rexwantinsex]

I disagree that the industry is in decline at a global level, business has never been better for Euro/American companies due to the availability of the global market via the internet.

Tube sites are not the primary cause of industry decline, but they do contribute. The real issue as far as I'm aware is a lack of "good looking" homegrown talent, and the levels they will work to. With the exception of a number of either retired girls, or handful who now work for themselves (Michelle Moist/Thorne etc) the British porn industry has always seemed to be more "niche" driven than mainstream - we have a lot of amateur, chubby, granny and chav themes, whereas American/Euro porn has a lot of young girls who fit well into the "model" category who work with mainstream porn actors doing all levels

New British girls are also somewhat reluctant to work to hard B/G including anal, and we don't have a lot of "attractive" male talent to work with - sorry, but who really wants to see a hot 19yr old shagging a 40-50yr old guy in a car park?

I keep wondering what it is that drives an individual into the industry, a number of American girls seem to come from broken/abusive holes where they view porn as a way to make good money quick, and retaliation against an abusive family - I don't want this life for anyone, but in Britain, young girls today are less likely to view porn as a seedy business based on the niche products our producers put out, when they can make some money for themselves via webcam or their own amateur sites

I have no idea why British porn intends to remain at an amateuristic or "niche" level where we expect young girls to want to work with older "actors" rather than making guys like Kane Turner and Ben Kelly more available beyond a session on Shebang, but young girls coming into the industry would much rather go for a scene with those guys, over working with someone like Jim Slip (sorry) and having their friends find out that they did an "old" guy on camera and end up regretting that decision

Our social attitudes are different, but we need to model the industry output on US/Euro mainstream porn to make it viable again and attract newer talent to replace the older, retired girls

[rexwantinsex]

and before anyone suggests that most American girls I'm into are just fake Barbie dolls, I'm simply talking about the likes of girls like Lily Carter, AJ Applegate and Carter Cruise (no implants there, yet!) but all 3 of these young "stunners" have done it all from soft/lesbian scenes through to creampie scenes and gangbangs featuring up to 6 guys at a time - for major production companies, in rented mansions or in proper studios

Most of the time when I see a British production featuring a gangbang, it looks like 4 guys from the local pub and a girl from the bus stop working in someone's flat or warehouse - this just looks pale and poor in comparison, and doesn't make me want to spend my money on it

I know money doesn't grow on trees, but if the product looks cheap and amateuristic, people won't buy it over other "high quality" productions, and that's part of our problem - we look inferior so only apply to small markets rather than the wider mainstream

[one eyed jack]

Interesting comments Rex.

Reminds me of meeting Hans Moser in the loo in Brussells circa 1998/2000

Two men taking a piss side by side.

Hans Moser has no idea who I am moans about amateur gonzo killing the business. I was that amateur/gonzo guy starting out at grass roots level.

The point of this story is when too much of any kind of porn comes in, something else has its appeal in being different.

Right now I can see your point in that the glut of porn is really cheap and tacky but at the same time if there wasnt too much of it it would retain its niche appeal.

Thing is, if everyone went for the glossy well lit approach using the same models with the same guys the problem will persist and people will find that boring too.

If it was solely about quality, people like Andrew Blake among others wouldnt have packed up and left and purveyors of quality porn were suffering simply because the budgets they spent on productions were not justified in the returns and surely that is because people prefer to get it for free online.

We're not talking the levels of DVD piracy in the 90's and noughties, we are talking about free porn being a cultural institution now.

There are exceptions with the likes of Brrazzers and Mofos who have found a nice mix of stunning girls, nice locations and well shot filth with people who have nice body parts but ultimately, it comes down to the same formula: 4 positions and a cum shot.

The only conflict I find between pro and am is whether people want their sex real or staged.

[one eyed jack]

To be fair, technology has superceded the DVD. Why put a disc in a draw and scroll through a menu when all you have to do is click play and wait to buffer then away you go.

It doesnt help that when people sign up to your site to download your scenes en up giving t away to the world for free on tube sites.

If you dont recongise this as a huge problem then perhaps it is you who is blinkered and in denial of the problems facing producers