Web 2.0 Killed the Porn Star?

[gonzo]

Who would have ever thought the porn industry would be under threat today? Having survived religious outrage, legislative threats and societal shunning, the porn industry has, like a cockroach, always survived crawling out of the deepest and darkest corners after the fallout.

It’s everywhere we look – upper shelf of the news agent, late night TV, cable and the Internet. In fact, you could argue porn practically invented the Net.

So you would think that the porn industry would be thriving in today’s Web 2.0 revolution. I certainly thought so, but was surprised to find that the Internet is actually contributing to the industry’s decline.

It seems the whole user generated video and content phenomenon is starting to kill off the mainstream porn industry with Porn DVD sales down by as much as 30% since 2005.

So who is cleaning up? It is not some huge media conglomerate. It is Joe Bloggs, the man on the street…the person with a healthy appetite for sexual expression. That’s right you and me… Ok, not you and me. I’m certainly no porn buff, but user generated porn is the hottest thing on the market – and it’s free!

YouPorn.com has really caught the porn film industry with their pants down (pardon the expression). Americans, in particular, are taking to it like ‘America’s Funniest Home Videos’.

I guess it just goes to show that nothing is invincible. Now, I don’t necessarily believe this will be the death of an industry valued at $14 billion, however I do think a valuable lesson can be learned here. No matter how ancient and well established an industry is, the Web continues to be a force to be reckoned with that can disrupt and shake up any industry, even those that have previously thrived online.

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