Gay and lesbian Website search experts Cybersocket announced they raised over $5,000 for charity at the first Unity Ball, held January 5, 2004, during the Internext Expo in Las Vegas.
"We're very proud to have hosted the first Unity Ball. The industry is stronger when it stands as one," said Cybersocket president Morgan Sommer in a statement. "But we are particularly grateful to the sponsors for making it all possible."
The donation was made on behalf of all of the event's sponsors: Bedfellow, Mancheck, Python, Imen, UGAS, Hot Desert Knights, Czech Boys, Goodthinxx, TopBucks, Falcon Studios, Bionic Pixels, Channel 1 Releasing/ChiChi Clicks, Specialty Publications, Dick Mag, Direct Studs, Badpuppy, AMVC.com, VideoSecrets, CCBill, Colt Studio, Platinum Bucks, All Worlds Video, RentBoy.com, Pride Bucks, Naked Sword, and, of course, Cybersocket.
"For a first-time event," said Bedfellow.com's Karl Edwards, presenting sponsor, "it was extremely successful."
Sommer agreed. "There were a lot of people, more than at any other party," he told AVN.com, "so we learned some important lessons about traffic flow. But we felt that overall it was good because there was plenty of space. The venue had tons of comfortable seating, friendly staff, and space for conversation and dancing.
“Next year, we are looking at a new venue that is still under construction. We hope to have more guests and help our sponsors and beneficiaries have more visibility."
Beneficiaries of the event, which was held at Ibiza USA inside The Aladdin Hotel, included Adult Sites Against Child Pornography, Internet Media Protective Association/The Acacia Defense Fund, and the Adult Industry Medical Health Care Foundation.
Cybersocket publishes Cybersocket.com, a search engine; Cybersocket: The Gay Net Directory, an annual guide with over 2,000 gay and lesbian site reviews; the printed Cybersocket Web Magazine; and The Cybersocket Newsletter, a biweekly e-newsletter targeting both Web professionals and Web surfers.
