If you think confusion reigns supreme in a Chinese fire drill, walk into the adult cable sector sometime and try this one on for size. \n In the film Glengarry Glen Ross, the issue was a matter of leads, leads, who's got the leads. And things got pretty surly trying to address that question. In the recent flap between the Colorado-based TeN Channel and Lisa Schmidt, president of the Santa Monica-based Intrigue Entertainment Group, Inc. it became a matter of addendum, addendum, exactly what the hell is the addendum? The surliness, however, didn't subside. Until now. \n Controversy stemmed over Schmidt's allegedly attempting to swing commission deals on her behalf when her duties with TeN were specifically defined in other arenas. Schmidt was brought on board in an advisory capacity to establish the channel's programming grid, but not in a sales capacity. Schmidt's was a six-month deal. \n Part of the controversy came about in the way licensing deals were worded, particularly the addendum to the agreements, according to Dan Bender of the TeN Channel. \n "The addendum reflects the licensing price, titles, length of time of licensing and territories they're being licensed for," Bender explained. "A few of those early addendums reflected a commission to Lisa that was to be paid by certain studios. We didn't have a problem with that as long as it didn't raise the licensing fee that I agreed to pay for that title. On a few of those addendums, the verbiage was perhaps misunderstood. The verbiage made it look like TeN was paying the commission. TeN didn't. The studio paid it." Bender said Schmidt was told that there were between three to five studios that Schmidt had leeway with and was free to bring in titles, but never authorized cutting of financial deals. \n However, subsequent memos faxed by Schmidt to a number of adult video companies this past August lent the impression that Schmidt was not only acting as the exclusive representative for licensing product to the TeN Channel, but was expanding her territorial limits of companies, besides. Schmidt, in fact, used that specific language in the memos, referring to herself as an "exclusive representative." This was done in a memo faxed to Linda DeRoo of Hollywood Video, which Schmidt urged DeRoo to sign. Other companies also received similar faxes. Bender said that Schmidt hadn't been given the green light to approach those companies. \n The circulation of the faxes prompted the TeN Channel to immediately issue a letter to the industry-at-large, formally notifying one and all that only four individuals were authorized to license titles for the channel. Schmidt's name was conspicuously absent. \n When first contacted about the DeRoo memo, Schmidt was hazy on some details but claimed she never told anyone, including DeRoo, that she was exclusive representative for licensing. DeRoo, at the time, said she got a different impression, that Schmidt had "the inside track" to TeN and that DeRoo had to deal exclusively with Schmidt to get any headway with TeN. \n Schmidt explains that she wasn't forthcoming at the time the story broke because she didn't want to have to "substantiate" herself and, thus, put TeN in a bad light. \n Schmidt, again, holds firm that she functions in a consulting capacity with the channel and honors the direct relationships the channel has developed with adult manufacturers. \n "I don't license, nor did I ever," Schmidt avows. Schmidt says that she works with Rob Wilson, the programming director at TeN, and part of her responsibilities allow her to provide history about past licensing deals on titles based on her experience in the business. Schmidt formerly worked for CED as vice-president in a programming capacity. \n "I can see where TeN's concerns came from, based on the memos," Schmidt says. "Linda DeRoo is a friend and I was trying to do her a favor. She had sent a bunch of her product in for consideration and never heard back from the channel. I was going to bat for her." Schmidt said there may have been other reasons involved why TeN was not jumping on DeRoo's titles, but wouldn't speculate as to why. \n Bender said that TeN wasn't interested in the vintage Hollywood titles from the Hal Freeman era, but in DeRoo's current product. Bender said that TeN, in fact, was ready to cut a deal with DeRoo based on review of the more current product. \n Schmidt also claims that the purposes of the faxes were to present a forum of improvements to Matt Cohen, chief operating officer at TeN, and that she had the best interests of TeN at heart. \n "I'm struggling to comment on the situation," said Schmidt. "There's no individual at fault here except confusion in the way things were getting started."
Ed Powers to Air on TeN Channel
On the heels of its official launch date this past September, the TeN Channel has announced a deal that will bring Ed Powers' cult radio program, Ed Powers' Bedtime Stories, to cable. The cable TV rendition of Powers' show, which airs on KLSX 97.1 in Los Angeles on Friday and Saturday nights, will feature controversial adult topics and nudity. The show will be similar in presentation to Howard Stern's program, which airs on the E! Channel; but with a decidedly harder edge. \n Weekly tapings of Powers' live broadcasts are scheduled to begin in October and will be aired later in the month. The channel also said that it was working out details on a cable version of Powers' enormously successful Dirty Debutantes series. Powers was out of town and unavailable for comment.
AVE Gets Premier Airing in Honolulu
It seemed like a match made in grass skirt heaven. AVE Entertainment, which specializes in adult features with Asian performers, got a premier airing of its product in Honolulu. \n The Hawaiian cable system, Oceanic Cable, began airing six of AVE's titles in October to 3,000 hotel rooms and 30,000 homes.
Pacific Rim Job
An experiment started several months ago, which has brought adult cable programming for the first time to army bases in the Pacific Rim, is an unqualified success, according to reports. \n Americable, a satellite-delivered cable operator, is currently providing a variety of American cable products to servicemen stationed in Okinawa. Plans are in the works to expand the territory to South Korea.
Playboy Making Headway in Eastern Europe
In a case of turnabout being fair play, not only is Eastern Europe supplying adult performers to the American market, it appears that it's becoming an avid consumer for American product as well. \n The Playboy Channel reports that it's making strong inroads particularly in Hungary and the Ukraine. European consumers are so enamored with the product that the situation's prompted a two-day adult programming expo scheduled in Budapest for Nov. 27 and 28.
