December 14, 2011 04:32pm
From the Trenches 12/11
Source: Dave Cummings
by: Dave Cummings — Hall of Fame Porn Star
''Tis the season to be jolly,'' but for many in the Porn Industry it’s a challenge this year, what with piracy chipping away in chunks… BIG chunks. Yikes! With some notable exceptions, porn as I’ve experienced it over the 18 years that I’ve participated in it seems to have lost its year-over-year growth, and instead appears to be withering on the vine. Yikes again!
Some of you have seen the "How to Get Into Porn" piece that I wrote many years ago. Approximately two years ago, I added some comments about the way piracy was making it even more difficult for new want-to-be actors and actresses to access the world of porn; what follows are some of those updated comments, hopefully of interest to present wannabes and others not familiar with the toll piracy is heaving upon the legal world of porn:
"It’s been a very difficult couple of years for porn, one that can be blamed in large part upon the continued copyright infringement and piracy of porn videos and Adult Internet materials which often end up being illegally uploaded onto some Internet sites where they are freely downloaded illegally, and with no compensation to/for the company which footed the expenses to make them. Consequently, many studios (and some web sites, too) seem to have cut way back on productions, or number of releases, or production budgets, or bookings for porn stars, or number of employees in admin, shipping, and other jobs, or number of days they are open per week, or the physical downsizing of their office and/or warehouse space, or in some cases many or ALL of the aforementioned.
These unavoidable cut-backs mean loss of business income, which hurts government due to the associated decrease in federal and state taxes paid, along with a nosedive in sales tax revenues; also, porn-related jobs are lost since there is a lessened need for people to do the catering, make-up, set crewing, location rentals, marketing materials and post-production needs, sales, etc. I imagine that even Ups and others like them are suffering decreases in Porn Industry shipping fees. A healthy Adult Film Industry is a plus to the economy, but the present situation is dire. Besides the producers of legitimate porn, the economy suffers from the many non-working Adult Industry folks whom, as consumers, cut back on spending, thus affecting the viability of other businesses and jobs.
I imagine that the religious right-wing radicals are happy about our situation, one that also carries over to adult internet operations which are likewise hurt by the overall copyright infringement; bottom line is that thievery of our products is what’s causing the religious folks to "win" -- I wonder if they feel good about the adult industry being brought to its knees by what amounts to a sin, namely stealing! It seems like thievery is accomplishing what the religious "do-gooders" hypocrites have failed at in the past.
Some of the illegal tube web sites which allow/facilitate uploading for subsequent downloading of copyrighted materials are outside the jurisdiction of American courts. And, for those in the United States, courts sometimes move slowly. And, technology to protect copyrights has not yet been developed to effectively stop the copyright theft. Even if it is slowed or shows signs of being almost to the point of being stopped, unlawful down-loaders might go on a binge to accumulate as much porn as they can before the spigot gets shut off. The thirst for new porn, especially involving new fresh faces/bodies, will probably continue but might be filled by sometimes harsher productions out of Russia, Eastern Europe, Asia, etc. I worry that some imported porn could be a significant negative for viewers who might mistakenly think that fisting, sex after bondage, or making a women compliant via alcohol, is normal and ok; with imported porn, I worry that child porn from outside America might find a way to further infect our population. How are religious radicals (or the copyright infringers and lawbreakers) going to feel about what the imported harsher porn might suggest to their children or grandchildren as they form their own sexual standards, relationships, and marriages?"
To Resume:
I’m told that the piracy now even includes pirates "ripping" off entire websites and illegally uploading them for UNLAWFUL downloading globally. Yikes yet again! In my opinion, porn might survive but not like it used to be. Worse, it might not be American porn. I hope I’m wrong. There’s a flicker of hope lately from some Federal Judges who are issuing favorable judgments and opinions in copyright infringement cases involving porn; but there are also some who seem to be dodging the matter. Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, I won’t personally be investing in porn productions.
Dave Cummings
www.davecummings.com
www.davecummings.TV
www.davecummingsinfo.com
www.davecummingsvod.com
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