Does anyone know if sales of pornography is greatly affected by the current downturn in the US economy? It could be assumed that with gas so high people have less money to spend on expendables, such as new TVs, clothes, and of course porn. Does anyone have any experience with this? Distributors, directors, etc? Opinions?
Yes pornography is affected by a bad economy. Other factors are hurting the industry as well, but porn is definitely NOT recession proof. It may be able to withstand a recession better than other industries (much like the mainstream movie industry) though.
I still blame sites such as rapidshare for part of the recession too. Below is a link to google.com's trend graph. You can also type in search keywords ( eg: type in a keyword you would thinka typical person who would look for porn ) to see that trend also. [ invalid url ]
RS is just a host where people can upload all kind of movies, you can upload your family home movies for all they care. RS has nothing to do with porn itself, it's just a lot of people are using it as to upload their porn to.
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Clam Digger Deactivated User
Many a man fails as an original thinker simply because his memory is too good. 2268 Posts 1/05
Posted - Jun 13 2008 : 1:35PM
Actually some isp's such as Comcast appear to be screwing with them.
I'd rather go to work and be abused by others than stay at home and abuse myself 197 Posts 10/06
Posted - Jun 13 2008 : 6:08PM
It's not just torrent sites, but also "free" sites like TGP/MGP and tube sites. We as an industry are giving away so much free content on the internet to try and lure potential customers, that we are simply creating a whole population of people who can now jerk off and never pay for it. Think about it, there is SO much free porn on the internet that there is no need for most people to spend $ on porn.
Commisioner of Porn Quality Control 522 Posts 2/08
Posted - Jun 13 2008 : 6:08PM
Porn should boom in the recession. It's cheaper than hookers or a high maintenance date. Then again, it also makes you want to get hookers and or slumpbuster fat chicks.
I know that my friend's store is currently taking a beating. The summer is usually a slow time of year to begin with. But, as the price of gas continues to go up, the number of DVD's that he rents & sells continues to decline.
Because porn is cheaper than houses or cars or flat-screen TVs, I say porn is recession resistant. But it's not recession proof. A recession is when your neighbor stops buying porn. A depression is when you stop buying porn.
It is not recession. There is a reason why AVN this year had so much empty space and turned into a swap meet 1/3 the way walking down the floor. There was even a teeth bleaching business with a huge booth for goodness sakes!
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Hypermastia Deactivated User
These R The Buttocks Of Ryan Star: No Butt Can Compare 248 Posts 6/07
Posted - Jun 14 2008 : 10:23AM
I'm a retailer, and I can tell you, Yes, the recession has definitely affected DVD sales along with everything else (I sell so much more than sex films). Last year I would pocket $300-$400 in sex DVDs a week (I have a very modest selection). Since February, if I collect a pathetic $150 in 5 day work week I call it not horrible. My customers (god bless them) are definitely not able to afford computers or they do not have access where they may view sex imagery in private. I read on Xbiz that indeed, poor Dvd sales are a certain harbinger of economic doom. I've read much on advdt in regards to the "death of DVD", but know that blue ray DVD is a huge success, and while prices remain outrageous (especially for the players), the cost will come down relatively soon. Computer porn still fails to offer even regular Dvd quality picture and sound. BR Dvd will keep the format alive for some time before you will see the highly unlikely scenario of Computer Porn making all other formats obsolete. Remember, simple sex magazines never went extinct with the advent of the VCR. Please excuse any typos, grammar or spelling errors, as I am typing from a miniature iPhone keyboard.
I must say: Technically, we're NOT in a recession. Recession means two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth. However... GDP growth was at 0.9% in the first quarter of `08. So, no we're not in a recession... but GDP is a bit low. And if we're gonna complain about high prices... well that's inflation. That's something else. Why are analysts so concerned about the housing market? Because if consumers are spending every dime to make their mortgage payments, then they'll have less money to spend on other things (such as porn). Which could lead to a recession.
I still say some companies need to drop their prices when it comes to their DVD's. They're charging way too much and they're actually provoking pirating in a way with their high prices. Sure there are those cheap bastards who still want everything for free but for collectors like myself it would motivate me to buy even more movies!
But it's hard to do that when the rates performers charge are higher than ever, and fewer and fewer stores are taking fewer and fewer pieces. And there are plenty of studios that have lowered and lowered and now they can't make a profit. It's a tough and complex situation.
I'd rather go to work and be abused by others than stay at home and abuse myself 197 Posts 10/06
Posted - Jun 14 2008 : 4:25PM
Porn DVDs are definitely WAY too expensive in the stores. Why would some college kid buy a DVD for 50 bucks when he can get all the wank material he needs for free on his high speed internet? Edited by - wusshater on 6/14/2008 4:26:04 PM
We are in a recession, technical or otherwise. The Government numbers are so massaged and altered even the mainstream is starting to recognize the BS. CPI is kept very low because this is what the government uses to calculate legacy payments such as social security and medicaid, so they only have to give retirees a 2.5% increase each year...meanwhile actual inflation is running 8-10%. Most of the large corporations use CPI to give cost of living salary increases to 95% of their employees too. The real question as we move into 2009 is what "technically" constitutes a depression?
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GeorgiaBoy Deactivated User
50 Posts 6/08
Posted - Jun 14 2008 : 8:31PM
As a college kid, having the DVD makes for fun parties. >:) But I agree, deciding to eat Spaghetti-o's for a week for the DVD is a hard decision. ....sometimes.
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GeorgiaBoy Deactivated User
50 Posts 6/08
Posted - Jun 14 2008 : 8:33PM
Is that right? If inflation is running 8-10%, then someone would be losing money having their money in a saving's account and would also lose money unless their stocks/funds could break a 10% rate of return.
GeorgiaBoy, here is the kicker. Actually, food, and gasoline costs by some estimates are up ~16% from last year. Those are things we don't have much choice on buying, and we derive no pleasure from it. Those two costs are sometimes (shamefully) not factored into the often manipulated Consumer Price Index. However, that's what most Americans are feeling. Even though goods/ services cost more, most of us are not earning more than last year to make up for the difference. Its funny, but last week, some friends I train Jiu Jitsu with and I just had this conversation. A good number of them have to make some choices about discretionary spending, in favor of still bieng able to buy goods/services that are NOT discretionary. My friends that would buy 2 porn DVDs a month religiously are not doing so now. These guys are from all walks of life. Real quick.. Savings account interest rates historicly are not a good hedge against inflation (for long term). It's better than burying your money in the back yard sure, however, over time, it's a loosing proposition. Even if savings rates are on par with inflation, it's "opportunity loss" not having your money work better for you. Savings accounts, and CD's are excellent for short term liquidity of funds and a smaller percent of funds should be there. They are not designed as a primary investment vehicle. The stock market historicly yields returns of 10-12% over long term. Short term, with the Dow off for the year (due to lagging financial, retailing sectors), people perceive they are getting it from both ends.....their money doesn't seem to be growing at all. That said, the stock market when looked at over the long term has outperformed inflation by a comfortable margin. *Edited because I fail at typing* Edited by - Tyler Knight on 6/15/2008 4:13:32 AM Edited by - Tyler Knight on 6/15/2008 4:19:29 AM
pornography wasn't sex but fantasies of an impossibly hospitable world 12377 Posts 9/07
Posted - Jun 15 2008 : 4:54AM
I've read more than a few producers say that the real problem is that the industry has been overproducing for years. The crap flooding the market drove down production costs and shooting time to the point where quality declined massively and so I think a lot of consumers are fine with downloading, since they were getting ripped off so badly for years.
The above post should be sent out in a press release to illustrate that not every person involved in the porn industry is a slack-jawed, drooling high school dropout. Tyler has restored my faith in humanity.
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GeorgiaBoy Deactivated User
50 Posts 6/08
Posted - Jun 15 2008 : 12:54PM
Thanks for the clarification! I wonder why they don't include the food/gas in the Consumer Price Index. Willful ignorance?
as mentioned in earlier post, they exclude food/gas, because social security annual % increases are pegged to CPI. This saves the government billions of dollars every year. Another example of a massaging technique...during the massive bull market in housing, the GOV used "equivalent rent" instead of home costs in the CPI calculation.
Lol, Thanks Mike. I was in corporate finance in the mid 90's, and had series 7, and series 24 liscences. Edited by - Tyler Knight on 6/15/2008 7:47:12 PM
No business, including porn, is recession-proof. Some are more recession-resistant than others, that's all. I haven't purchased porn for over a year -- rentals only. More bang for the buck, if you will.
Interestingly enough, during WW II, when people were forced to ration goods for the War Effort ( gasoline and aluminum were rationed. Women would pencil seam lines on the back of thier legs instead of wearing nylons for examples) , the film industry flourished. There was a great sense of Nationalism, and unity. There was an explosion of musicals, and people used film as escapism. Not comparing porn to mainstream, however, that was a golden age for film. Historicaly, war actually stimulated American Industry overall, and made us into the industrialised power that we are today. How sad times change.
Are you sure that it's sad that it's no longer true that the best thing for the American economy is war? It may mean that the government might be less likely to pursue unnecessary wars in the future since they know it isn't likely to provide the economic boost that it has in the past. Thus, less wars and more lives saved, both in the US and other countries. It could spawn a new era of diplomacy over of tyranny. American Imperialism could become a thing of the past. Or, I could just be hoping for far too much. Still, I do contend that this change will make Washington think a little bit longer and more carefully before pursuing military action in the future.
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GeorgiaBoy Deactivated User
50 Posts 6/08
Posted - Jun 16 2008 : 7:36PM
This is something you've probably heard about Tyler. The article talks about a proposed 25% tax on pornography to try and make up California's growing debt. I don't like the assertions it makes in the article, though: that an increase in the price of porn wouldn't affect demand. http://www.kutv.com/content/news/watercooler/story.aspx?content_id=7276089e-3b07-44e9-9ce4-2cd6e1c31b37
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GeorgiaBoy Deactivated User
50 Posts 6/08
Posted - Jun 16 2008 : 7:38PM
Whether or not you agree with the current war, it sucks that in the past when we had a war it would stimulate the economy. Now it's not the case.
Me saying "How sad times change.." was not a reflection of my politics of war. It was more or less about my disdain for the current economic policys, which are rapidly eroding the shrinking middle class, coupled slipping sense of Nationalism that Americains once had in times of crisis.... the belief that when the chips are down, the American "Can Do" ethic, and our sense of unity will prevail. I should have placed that statement at the end of the first paragraph....it was an afterthought more than anything. I think a lot faster than I type. I'm only 36, but from what my maternal grandparents (who were kids during the depression, and lived through the post War slump) would tell me, i'ts a stark contrast in morale, and ideology. Edited by - Tyler Knight on 6/17/2008 2:49:16 AM
Hey GeorgiaBoy, the link didnt work for me, but I am familiar with the porn tax proposal. Whether or not taxing is a good or bad idea in itself.....taxing by such an exorbitant sum of 25% is nothing short of idiotic(in my humble opinon). I wonder what the progress is on that proposal. Anyone know?
I read your blog you magnificent bastard! 274 Posts 12/05
Posted - Jul 1 2008 : 8:59AM
I love watching these Armani wearing talking heads on the cable news networks tell us we're not in a recession because "technically a recession is...blah blah blah". Argue semantics and technicalities all you want but I can tell you that down here in the retail trenches where your disposable income is what keeps us alive, that we have been taking a beating for at least a year now. The price of necessities is cutting deeply into that disposable income that most service industry types rely on to stay in business. It's having a domino effect. Hours are being cut and no one is doing much hiring in the service industry sector. Now those folks aren't spending as much money either and on it goes. And +1 to all of Tyler's posts.
Well, the recession question is certainly settled....time to open this thread back up. Many sophisticated people agree that a vapor trail recession or depression is now at least 50% possible.
Posted - Jun 12 2008 : 1:05PM
