egafd.com

Well first off let me thank you for your response, this is a research project and any feedback is welcome.

That is fascinating to hear that some people still believe VCR tapes are a significant selling format, however, our quantitative research (an online survey), as well as, our qualitative research (interviews) has suggested that the most popular medium for consuming pornography is online streaming via a laptop, smartphone or tablet device.

I would recommend you read Pornocopia by Laurence O?toole, or even check out the work of Feona Attwood, Clarissa Smith, Jonathan Coopersmith and Steven Garlik (There are many more if you felt more inclined to research). These sources and our own research interviews with Dr. Sharif Mowlobocus and Georgina Voss have suggested to us an intrinsic relationship between the porn industry and technology. A brief history reveals this: VCRs made porn mass distributable, allowing the consumer to bring pornographic material out of the cinemas and into the private domain, handheld cameras allowed anyone to produce their own content anywhere they wanted. The Internet provided the consumer with a platform to consume and mass distribute content to a wide audience (as well as creating a place for virtual communities to thrive, such as this one!). Today, smart phones and tablets offer the consumer with the opportunity to record, edit, produce and distribute their own content, we want to find out the effects this has on the consumer just as much as the industry.

We believe that pornography is a fascinating medium and that the pornographic industry is both socially and culturally relevant, now more than ever. Our goal has nothing to do with notoriety and I seriously doubt the Daily Mail will be interested in this project. As for the beverage we were drinking, I believe it was a lager. However, I am unsure on the brand.

VCR comment was not a matter of belief, horses mouth from a shop selling them. Next time I'm in the area I'll call in to ask if demand has finally stopped or if there still exists this sub-culture that time forgot. Another interesting point from that conversation, one of their regulars had recently celebrated his 90th birthday. Online surveys are rarely very scientific in methodology, perhaps yours was an exception but it sure won't pick up oddities like this.

Of course technology and porn have been intimately entwined for 25 years and more though VCR, DVD, the internet and most recently mobile devices. My thinking was about the porn industry being slow to adapt, with the most interesting changes occurring in porn outside the industry while the industry itself declines in relevancy, economically, socially and culturally.

Yes its an interesting topic, if pretty well understood already, but reckon you are naive to think the gutter press won't use research such as yours to bang on about students and universities, they are always seeking out reasons to spout crap and I'm surprised your lecturing staff have approved your project.

Finally, if I were tasked with a similar project, I think I'd look to the future and ask what affect developments like Google glass are going to have on porn, far more fun than spreadsheeting DVD stats,

Significant?

Just because it is being sold doesnt mean its being sold in enough volume to warrant being significant

All it tells me is there are still a small group of people who have not made the transisition to DVDs which indicates they are well over their 50's or even in retirement age.

I doubt you will prove me wrong that a younger demographic are still using VHS. Most are into file downloads now and I imagine with all the controls Westminster Council have on the licensed sex shops that they are struggling to stay afloat.

I know of one company heamoraging money years ago that Im still surprised to see still around today but they must be making the money to bleed out

Tidy Productions is right

Porn is always on the periphery of new technology. i know producers both here and in Europe were shooting 3D porn and using new technology.

I (to my knowledge) am the first on record to use Contour HD cameras shooting my bts stuff

most peoplke even amateurs are using a variety of HD formats and smart phone apps in conjunction with Hero cams etc

many producers are utilising Canon Mk 2 DSLRs with primes and zoom lenses to achieve a level of quality we have never had before

T ebusiness is bang on the button. lets not gforget that it was porn that really gave way to the internets popularity. not social networking as it is now

Well this discussion is evidence that research into the relationship between pornography and technology is still relevant as it has sparked quite an interesting debate on these forums.

I find it interesting that you describe the porn industry as ?slow to adapt?, I say this because in all my research I have never heard it described like this. The general consensus by both academics and industry professionals is that the Porn industry has been at the forefront of new technologies, necessarily adapting to changing times. Sure, in some cases there is a romanticisation between the porn industry and technology (particularly the porn industries influence on mediums such as VHS over Betamax and the evolution of the CD:Rom). Although, as One Eyed Jack reiterated Pornographers have usually been on the cusp of technology.

Also I would like to know what you mean by ?with the most interesting changes occurring in porn outside the industry.? specifically what you mean by outside? We are interested to know what you mean by that? Our research has suggested quite the opposite to what you are saying; that the industry is most definitely not declining in social or cultural relevancy. However, I cannot comment on the economic aspect of its relevancy as I am not well grounded on the economic stability of pornographic commerce (although my understanding is that the past couple years have shown an increase in pornographic sales). Which brings me round to a point I would like to make, this project is focusing more on the social and cultural relevance of this relationship rather than the economic.

I appreciate your concern for the potential misuse of our research by the Daily Mail. However, this argument against production of research is counterintuitive. I assume by your description of the Daily Mail that you dislike these types of papers (We do too!). Surely you would prefer informed, academic research to be conducted on such a socially and culturally imbued topic, rather than say research conducted by said gutter press. Even if they are going to seek out our research, which I still find hard to believe, (please don?t confuse this with naivety) and use it as a reason to ?spout out crap?, this would never prevent us from finishing a project. If we believe our research is both socially and culturally relevant, interesting, and of an upstanding quality then I see no reason why we should retract our research.

We have actually looked into Google glasses and the potential future of this technology. However, most of the research we conducted into this area was speculative, which as you can imagine made the project difficult; this is because most academics prefer not to make tentative statements in interviews. Although you are correct it is an interesting avenue.

Again, thank you all for your responses they have been very helpful!

erotical, you went from VCR tape being a "significant selling format" to VCR tape being a "sub-culture that time forgot"....

And I'd wager that TidyProduction's research is a lot more scientific than your conversation with a Soho sex shop owner... The latter seems to be nothing but an anecdote.