hi everyone, I stumbled across this fantastic site avfantasy.com via a link from an adult dvd vendor. i say fantastic b/c they have the BEST screenshots, but the problem is that i can't figure out how to find the directory that shows me what screenshots they have. for example, all of the screenshot links start with http://images.avfantasy.com/screen_shot/ yet if you put that URL in an error message is returned. here is an example of a full URL: http://images.avfantasy.com/screen_shot/DVD2PXP-60130.jpg
does anyone know how to find the directory that you can choose screencaps from? thanks for any help!
it looks like you have to put a credit card down in order to register to then be able to view screenshots and i'd rather not have my credit card on another site but i appreciate the reply regardless.
Darnit, all the movie numbers I enter into that address just give me a picture of the box cover, like this one. How are you guys getting these long, extensive screenshots? Is it just luck of the draw?
This is an interesting site, so I'm wondering do they have permission to use all of this content plastered with their URL or are they just stealing it?
who knows. but i always use this site to check out screenshots, and then that will get me interested in a particular movie
i never buy from them though- they are pretty expensive
anyway, i really don't see the harm. they're just screenshots. i see other adult dvd vendors showing screenshots too, though not quite as extensive as this
The harm is someone sees 300+ screenshots of a single movie and says "Why should I buy the movie now? I just saw the whole thing" Plus it's copyright infringement. The only place (I believe) you should be able to get content from a companies movies are from that company, or an authorized reseller. If you don't have permission to do it, you shouldn't be doing it. And I really don't think these companies are giving them permission to use over the 5-10 screen shots then need to "portray" the movie to a potential buyer.
Yeah right. Nobody has the time to post 300 screenshots for a movie. What's the point? They would only be wasting their time to make them. Then it would eat up all their bandwidth. I only probably saw maybe 100 if that.
I think if I did in fact see 300+ screenshots i'd want the movie even more. A front and back box cover just doesn't do it.
The problem is that some gonzo video producers are dumb and don't even post BACK covers! Then if they did actually only post a front cover and they don't even let you enlarge it! They must actually think everyone must see it in a video store in person. I don't know about everyone else, but I never buy from local stores anymore.
Most every title I buy is now based on a large box cover, who is in it or more importantly a nice long trailer. If I can't see a trailer then a ton of screenshots would do the job.
There is trailers for a lot of movies. How can you say that 300+ screenshots make them not want to buy the movie, but yet a trailer is perfectly fine and doesn't have the same effect? I don't get it. What's the difference?
Anyway, I do agree that if they don't have permission then it's wrong. I think people who post screenshots for a movie are doing more good than harm.
Okay, so I was exaggerating a bit. But 100 screenshots it a lot more than needed, and they post their URL all over the screenshots, incase those images get out to the public, its a free advertisement for them at the producers expense. Its stealing, plain and simple. I really don't see how posting MORE screen shots is necessary, and this is coming from a guy who used to look at FREE porn all the time, because I didnt want to spend money on a product that I could see pretty much all of for free. Now, I am the person I was stealing from and I'm ashamed of what I was doing. Bad karma? maybe, but damnit stop stealing from me! haha I dont even know if any of our screenshots are on that site. Ahh whatever, my voice isnt gonna stop that company. And if it did, another site would just pop up doing the same thing. Its a lost cause... LONG LIVE PIRACY!
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tritone Deactivated User
1009 Posts 4/03
Posted - Mar 16 2005 : 1:47AM
I don't understand your argument at all. It would be different if what was being sold was a glossy mag and these were sample pics. Then I agree that showing excessive numbers of uncensored pics would be a mistake. But we are talking about a movie -- with moving pictures.
Who is going to see 100 HOT pictures from a movie and then think -- "Oh, well I've seen it all, no need to see the movie". If anything, the great screens will entice them to purchase /rent the movie.
Or on the flip side, it could convince them that the movie isnt' what they thought it would be.
phenomenal, thanks for the tip ellroy. glad to see it seemed to help others out as well, don't think you can beat their selection and availability of pics.
That's exactly what i say to myself... after having realised how much said movie is going to suck !
The bottom line is: screenshots that give you a *real* preview of the content (a la avfantasy) are beneficial to good products and good products only.
And that is really too bad for an industry which business model is (mostly ? sometimes ? seldom ?) based on selling sub-par content to disgruntled but strangely acquiescent horny males.
Anyway... avfantasy has my full support, and i hope other online retailer will start offering that kind of service.
What I'm basically saying, is if they don't have permission, they're STEALING. And they shouldn't be posting thier URL all over the image, its NOT their image, if anything, they should post the name of the moive the company, and the url of that company that owns the product.
I got your point aiden, but they only post their url on the screenshots in order to prevent other from stealing the material/hot linking to the pics, basically they're protecting their bandwidth.
Things are the way they are because porn producers/studios either fail to realize that trailer/screenshots/preview material are important to customers, or they are well aware of it and consciously try to fool their customers.
Plus putting up screenshots is akin to quoting a text, it falls under fair use...
I really don't believe it falls under fair use. Because if I offer screenshots as part of a pay membership website, then that means my members are getting something they can't get anywhere else for free, and because I am the owner, noone else as the right to use my material unless I explicitly say so.
It would be the same way, blockbuster could not put 100 screen shots of a hollywood movie up on their site with "blockbuster.com" watermark to "sell" a product.
Sure they could. If you walk into a store, They often have a movie playing on some monitors to encourauge people to purchase or rent it. That's a lot more than some screenshots. When you hear music on a radio station, a dj usually mentions the stations name. A car dealership has their names on the cars they sell. Pretty much every music store has kiosk for you to sample the music before you buy it these days. Bottom line, Avfantasy is doing their best to better service their customers. They paid for those dvd, and within their rights to let their customers see what they are purchasing.
If you don't want them to create the screenshots, the solution is simple. Don't sell them the DVD's.
I have to say screenshots always convinced me to buy a movie. sometimes when i am looking for a certain actress and screenshots tell me that her scene is not the kind i would like i stay away from the movie, if i see ONE shot that gets me excited i click on add to cart.
But they're not making money out of the screenshots, they'not selling them as content, they just offer them for free, and are selling legitimate dvd.
Avfantasy is not your typical shady website ripping dvds and making money out of unlicensed content. They do legitimate online retail sale.
But them making money (or not) out of it is not even relevant. The point is: were do you draw the line between fair use/promotion of a product and piracy ?
For example, in europe, you can go to a cd store, and listen to cds before deciding if you want to buy them or not... nobody (not even paranoid major record labels) would even dare calling that practice piracy.
Like the online previews question, you have to look at this from the pornographer's point of view. Most titles have a very limitted upside – a few thousand copies at most, and no amount of promotion or advertising is going to change move that number to a significant degree. More over, many (most?) customers are repeat customers, the real risk with them is doing something that might make them not buy.
I think if you look at it with this in mind it's not too hard to see Aiden's point: A super abundence of preview pics may very well turn good repeat customers into online wankers (why by the cow when you can get the milk for free?) without replacing them with a greater number of new customers.
A few preview pics of each scene in a video does not equal the video. If a person is only interested in some pics, then he isn't the type of guy that buys videos.
If The pornographer that their repeat customers wont buy the video after seeing some preview pics. Then the pornographer knows that there video isn't worth buying, and are knowingly trying to screw their repeat customers.
Customers should have an idea of what they are buying.
Retailers should help their customers find what they are looking for.
It's not like the people are asking for a money back gaurantee. They just want to make an informed purchasing decision.
I am absolutely my worst enemy. Because before I was making porn, i was watching (internet) and buying porn. If I saw enough of a movie for free, I didn't buy it. If I "read" about a movie and I thought it sounded good, i would look for it for free, then if I couldnt find it, i resorted to buying it. I KNOW for a FACT there are more of "me" out there, because I know a few of them. So you guys are just a handful of the GOOD guys out there who are using the "service" of AVFantasy.com to its "intended" purpose.
Again my whole point. screenshots are fine...but the amount they're using seems overkill to me. I really would hate to see a smaller company suffer on the sales of their films, because so much of the movie has been already shown to an otherwise potential buying customer. (Thank you Tony)
I love the smell of Gottlieb in the morning. 67 Posts 9/04
Posted - Mar 18 2005 : 4:18PM
The amount of screenshots they're using is not the same all the time, some times it's many, some times it's few.
What I don't understand is that you see these screenshots as some kind of threat against your and other companies chances to sell DVD's, you should see them as a possibility!
It may sound bad by me saying this, but bigger companies "quality" products are going to sell regardless if someone sees screencaptures or not. I simply just don't agree to a someone posting that many screenshots to sell a quality product that is going to sell regardless. But then again, I really have no idea whether its causing more peices to sell, or less, or doesn't do a difference.
I'm really interested in hearing what other producers feel about this, because it seems like its only me and Tony C with some insight on this matter...
"A thousand screenshots does not a movie make." Come on for real...
I think the word transparency comes into play here. To be able to have a reasonable understanding of the product in question before making the choice to buy it instead of going on a wing and a prayer (and usually getting burnt).
What I would really like to see is full resolution screenshots that really show the technical quality of the product. Pixelation and other compression artifacts, halos, excessive grain, etc. Is the image in focus, how it is lit, does it look natural or compressed etc.
In the end the screenshots, no matter how many of them, do not give out enough information to replace a movie or the experience of seeing the movie. If a person want´s to see the movie, as in the directors and performers artistic interpretation of sexual acts, then he/she will buy it.
Besides, there is so much free content floating around anyway that online wankers do not have to focus on screenshots of a particular movie for as an aid to sexual gratification. Hell, I think that online wanking is not a valid argument against having movie screenshots displayed on the web to aid the consumers in making an informed decision.
If you don´t like the practice then you can voice out and prohibit the use of screenshots of *your* movies. To me it would seem an odd choice, as in you would have something to hide...
I have absolutely nothing to hide, I do however have a lot to lose. And yes people jerk off to screen shots. I know because I have done it. Maybe you look at screen caps and buy or don't buy a movie, but I know potential buyers out there are being persauded to buy. A great man out there once said "Never show the cumshot in your scene for free, you will lose the sale" I take my advice from the master.
i for one would be more apt to buy if i saw a preview of what was to come i can remember when the reviews here came with screen shows before the laws made that a impossibility that is just my opinion :o)
Thanks Ellroy.This is only for Mozilla Firefox users. I Did install DictionarySearch 0.9.2 Extension. After installing (and restarting Firefox) i did go here: Tools > Extensions > DictionarySearch > Settings and add this new Search option:
text: avfantasy "$" URL: http://images.avfantasy.com//screen_shot/dvd2$.jpg keyword: (anything you want)
Now at AVfantasy, i only have to highlight Item code, Right-click with Mouse and choose "avfantasy". after that new Tab opens with title pics or cover.
my FF is not english version, so some words can be wrong.
Thanks for the link o the site and the method for viewing the screenshots - they are great and I am compiling my wish list to buy without the uncertainty. One thing... does anyone have a devious method of watching the trailers? (or am I getting too greedy)
I've used this a couple times in the last few days since you posted this. Thanks
Occasionally after inserting the Item number, I still get the page that says nothing is found. No big deal - stuff happens.
However, for the UYA series, I found that not any of them would produce any screen shots. Any ideas as to why? Is it something with our method? It is just odd that every Item number from that series will not work.
Where you guys live? Maybe U.S visitors are redirected, because those new 2257 rules are or something. I can see AVfantasy.com page, i hit reload and everything and i still see it, and site also works.
When you put in www.avfantasy.com you do get a page that says Welcome to AV fantasy. However, when you choose any of the links from the page, you are redirected to the amorz.com page.
I remember trying that link, posted by Ellroy back then. Wherever it took me, if I recall, I had to click a through a couple more times. Maybe an Enter and maybe another for English.
All I did was bookmark the English page, thus skipping all that other stuff. That is what that link I posted above was.
Note Hardware's post. This is exactly what happens to me too. Earlier today, I had not had time to try going to www.avfantasy.com. Just tried it. It loaded, and it looked familiar. But, as soon as I clicked on "West" or the U.S. flag to get an English version, it took me right to the same amorz Japanese site.
If you are still able to see the American movies listed, etc., let us know. See if you can determine what you are doing different from what we are doing.
I use same "Western" -link and site works. I can see US titles and everything. I now did try "U.S. flag" and/or "Enter" under US flag and site seems to work also. I think this is some 2257 thing, visitors from US are redirected. I'am in the Europe, what about other visitors from outside the US?
avfantasy site is also updated, page after "Western" -entry says: "Updated June 24, 2005". I did do 3rd Degree search and those new titles are added. and 3rd Degree did update their site 2or3 days ago.
Introducing Lady LorReign
Posted - Mar 11 2005 : 7:23PM
