Opportunity #1 Co-branding with Computer Game Firms
As computer games become more risque, it creates a natural opportunity for adult Websites to partner with game developers to create co-branded content. This is already taking place, led (not surprisingly) by a company that's been responsible for pioneering much of the erotic industry. Playboy recently announced a global licensing deal with ARUSH Entertainment in conjunction with Groove Games to create, market, and distribute a set of interactive simulation video games for multiple platforms (PC, PlayStation 2, and Xbox) by 2004.
The Playboy/ARUSH/Groove agreement provides a model for how adult entertainment brands can be packaged into a gaming environment. The first game that the alliance is working on will allow players to pretend that they're Hugh Hefner wandering through the Playboy mansion, probably having encounters with his various "guests" and "girlfriends." The business plan leverages Playboy's reach to its customer base, and includes heavy promotion in Playboy magazine and on the Website. In addition, the games will be promoted through the standard game industry advertising and merchandising channels. There's little doubt that the presence of topless models in the game environment will create a certain demand for the game, because Playboy readers spent over $300 million on video games over the last year with more than 3.1 million readers owning a video game system, according to Playboy sources.
It could be argued that Playboy, due to its high brand visibility, is better suited than most online erotica companies to leverage its brand. However, there are many high-visibility sites on the edge of the mainstream with the potential to be co-branded in a gaming environment. This need not take the form of a fully-branded game, as in the case with Playboy.
For example, in the PlayStation2 game Grand Theft Auto, the player competes by stealing different automobiles, with extra points for stealing "designer" automobiles that resemble classic cars. The game also includes hookers who will perform various sexual acts on the player-character. A smart Webmaster might approach the game developers (or the developers of the inevitable spin-offs and imitations) with an offer to include "designer" hookers based on actual porn stars. Alternatively, many virtual reality games include artificial cityscapes with billboards - providing an opportunity for the savvy Webmaster to buy advertising space within that virtual environment.
Websites that are too small to forge agreements with computer game developers need not be left out in the cold. Many computer games feature user-customizable "skins" that change the appearance of the characters in the game. For example, I recently downloaded a Britney Spears "skin" for the popular The Sims game and then had the interesting experience of coaxing "Britney" to doff her white leather outfit and join me nude in the (virtual) hot tub. The "skin" in this case had been created by a (presumably) horny fan, but there is nothing to stop an adult Website from offering "skins" that resemble the talent featured on the site, and then publicizing this fact both on the adult site and on various fan sites and the forum of that individual game.
To take advantage of this opportunity, adult Webmasters need to become more aware of the computer gaming industry, how it operates, and the companies in the computer gaming industry that that might make for potential partnerships.
Opportunity #2. Creating Competitive "Reality-based" Content
The biggest breakthrough in pornographic content in recent years has been the advent of "fake" amateur sites, like Bangbus.com, which purport to show the actual behavior of individuals. While many Webmasters are now repositioning their current and future content to fit that model, few have considered that the original model for that programming actually came out of the mainstream. The "fake" amateur sites attempt to recreate the "realism" of television shows like COPS, albeit in a completely different context. It's entertainment posing as a combination of voyeurism and reportage.
However, the COPS format is relatively old-fashioned at this point in terms of television programming. Today's television is dominated by so-called "reality" shows which are actually game shows featuring PG content. In many of these shows, contestants compete for a relationship with a desirable person of the opposite sex. In others, the competition is more overt, but is generally arranged so that attractive people can appear in situations that reveal their physical bodies. In yet other cases, the audience is asked to participate in determining the outcome of the competition. All of these situations can be easily adapted to the adult Website environment.
For example, one adult Website recently ran a "boot camp" where the talent competed for a $10,000 contract. While this competition was rudimentary (e.g. who can give the better blowjob), it did generate a certain amount of interest for the site in question, including some attention from the mainstream media. An obvious extension would be to allow consumer participation in the decision-making process. This could take the form of simple voting (as in the TV show Big Brother) or it could take the form of a more active participation where consumers would help direct the overall action. Another interesting twist might be the inclusion of consumers as actual participants. For example, consumers "betting" on a particular model would gain the chance to win a "date" with the model.
Over time, this type of competition could be extended online, between selected consumers. In this case, consumers willing to be "public" participants would compete in an online game (such as The Sims or some other) for prizes that would consist of unique content (such as anal footage of a model who previously had refused to do anal) or even of actual contact with the model. What's exciting about these concepts is that adult Webmasters would be able to charge entry fees plus metered usage for access to the game. In addition, the "reality" show angle will tend create a loyal customer base who is committed to discovering the "outcome" of the competition. (e.g. "Tune in next week and find out if Joe Consumer gets to boink Suzy BigBoobs - and win a chance to boink her yourself.")
To take advantage of this opportunity, Webmasters will need to create a compelling "reality" concept that adapts well to their Websites. In addition, Webmasters will need to determine and incorporate technology that will allow for the competition aspect of the "reality" to take place. At first, this might just involve some kind of voting mechanism. In the future, this will involve the incorporation of online computer game technology as an element of the Website interface.
Opportunity #3: Expand Into New Interface Paradigms
Today, the main interface to adult entertainment Websites is the "browser" paradigm that's the mainstay of the Internet. While this interface is likely to remain popular for some years to come, it has not adapted well to non-PC devices such as televisions, where a great deal of computer gaming activity takes place. The browser paradigm has also proven awkward as an interface for computer gaming and, as a result, most online computer games run a client program that seizes control of the system, presenting an interactive interface that's unique to the gaming environment.
What's interesting about these interfaces is that they're admirably well-suited not just to game-playing, but for the displaying of video-style content, particularly when that content is "virtual" rather than recorded. Because of this, it's highly likely that new paradigms for online interaction will emerge from the gaming industry over the next few years, paradigms that will inevitably be mapped into the online erotica environment. These paradigms include:
* Virtual personalities whose mouths move in response to the spoken words of a remotely located human.
* Joystick controlled "wandering" through virtual environments which include presentation of video content inside television screens that exist only in the virtual environment.
* Metered displays surrounding a viewing window that constantly remind the consumer of his status in the context of the game.
It's only a matter of time before these alternative paradigms are incorporated into adult Websites. As I pointed out in part one of this series, ultra-high resolution virtual personalities will allow adult Webmasters to create new kinds of sex-chat experiences. Similarly, porn consumers might prefer an environment where content is selected more interactively than in the current browser-based model. Similarly, the idea of onscreen metering lends itself well to some of the advanced pricing and business models that we'll be discussing in the final installment of this series.
This leads us, in turn, to the eventual advent of alternative touchy/feely interfaces that were discussed last issue. While there are several adult entertainment sites that are attempting to develop "virtual sex" devices, it's far more likely that gaming companies, due to economies of scale, will pioneer the commercial applications that could later be applied to adult entertainment. For example, the "force-feedback" technology that allows players to "feel" the devices (cars, guns, etc.) that they're operating could already be adapted to simulate the "feel" of dildo insertion into a virtual porn star.
To take advantage of this opportunity, adult Webmasters should purchase a PlayStation2 and/or an Xbox in order to assess the currently level of game technology and to monitor the development of online games to see how they're going to change the nature of online interaction.
Next up: In the final installment of this series, we'll discuss billing mechanisms and affiliate systems; government supervision; and we'll take a look at where the industry is likely to be in five to ten years.
Jack Morrison is a leading expert on the marketing of online erotica. He can be reached at [email protected].
