After more than a year of discussion, negotiation, paperwork, and rumors, it’s finally official: gay video-on-demand provider NakedSword has merged with Charlotte, N.C.-based VOD powerhouse AEBN.
Terms of the deal, which was finalized today, were not disclosed.
The merger is boon for AEBN, because it dramatically strengthens the company’s presence in the gay market. NakedSword increases its reach by aligning with what is considered one of the largest, if not the largest, companies in the VOD space.
“NakedSword is, indisputably, the strongest gay adult VOD brand,” said Scott Coffman, president of AEBN. “They have an understanding of the industry and a reputation with studios, stars, and producers that we could not hope to duplicate on our own. This is an unbeatable partnership.”
“This merger is a fantastic match of style and substance,” said NakedSword.com President Tim Valenti. “AEBN has the greatest reach in the industry, amazing traffic, and is the undisputed leader of the video-on-demand industry. Merging with AEBN allows us to grow in a way that will benefit all of our partner studios. NakedSword’s reputation will be able to expand to global proportions.”
Both Valenti and NakedSword co-founder Greg Lindberg will share leadership roles in the new company. On the technical side, NakedSword affiliates will transition to the AEBN back-end, but still will remain part of the NakedDollars program. NakedSword.com also will undergo a redesign, incorporating the AEBN pay-per-minute structure in favor of the current subscription model. The new site will debut later this month.
“AEBN pioneered the creation of tools like hosted galleries and their ability to build theaters, create RSS feeds, and trade traffic are unrivalled. In return, we’re working to help them to refine their approach for gay consumers and webmasters, and to craft innovative tools that break through the advertising clutter of other sites,” said Holly Ruprecht, NakedSword’s director of affiliates.
NakedSword will keep its San Francisco office and continue to develop original content, like the “Tim and Roma Show” and GayPornBlog.com. Meanwhile, the company will consolidate its encoding and programming bases with AEBN’s. The move will allow NakedSword to focus on creative development and strategic partnerships.
No staff cuts will be made as a result of the merger. Rather, NakedSword plans to add staff.
“This is a tremendous growth period for our company,” Valenti said. “We’re increasing our advertising and outreach many times over and will feature more of the content that separates us from vending-machine VOD providers. We’ve got brands and brawn that our competitors can’t match.”
In a clear show of strength, NakedSword/AEBN recently signed Falcon Entertainment and COLT Studio Group to exclusive deals. Similar deals are expected to follow.
