Page 37 - AVN March 2017

FEATURE
Twistbox, said he brought the whole Los Angeles-based team to Vegas
as his company works on expanding its reach.
“I think one of the issues that at least I’m seeing is there’s kind
of plateau right now in the industry, whether it be for lack of new
products or innovation or whatever. So we need to start looking at
really squeezing all the juice out of it that we can,” Khodaverdy said.
“So whether that be full expansion into new markets or new products
or crossing over or whatever the case may be, for Twistbox in particular
we’re going to be focused on launching new markets. So we can bring
our solutions that have been working well for all of our partners and
affiliates and getting even more opportunities to earn more revenue.”
Twistbox already has strong footprints in Portugal, Greece and South
Africa and is soon launching in Spain, Czech Republic and India.
Kay Matsangos, manager of operations for Stripchat, said his cam
company is only a year-and-a-half old but doing well with its low-key
approach.
“We are the webcam product of XHamster and XHamster is huge,”
the Cyprus-based Matsangos said. “We are new in the market but
doing good. It’s very simple, smooth and not aggressive marketing. Not
aggressive advertisement. It’s like easy-going. And it’s premium. So
basically you can go watch and if you like to pay, you pay; if you don’t,
you don’t.”
Another seasoned pro working the room was Jim Gunn, a veteran
porn producer based in Pompano Beach, Fla., near Fort Lauderdale. He
WITHOUT QUESTION, ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED
said he’s been ramping up with VR production, noting that a scene he
PANELS OF THE WEEKEND
shot featuring Katy Kiss for VR3000 received a nomination for Best VR
Sex Scene for the 2017 AVN Awards.
WAS ‘THE POT & PORN
“She had so much fun and was such a pleasure to work with. It was
a great experience. I was kind of glad that she got the nomination,”
CONNECTION.’ DISHING OUT
said Gunn, who has been coming to Vegas in January for more than 20
years.
As with every Internext show, there were rookies in the crowd, such
LOTS OF RED MEAT, THE GROUP DISCUSSED THE BOOMING
as Conor from MomPOV.com, a six-year-old site based in San Diego
YET TRICKY BUSINESS OF
that also works out of Las Vegas. He said. “For us, this is where we can
be more globally oriented. This is where we can more focused and start
MONETIZING LEGAL MARIJUANA.
building the Rolodex with the real players.”
Many “real players” could be found participating in the educational
seminars, one of Internext’s main draws. Dozens of seasoned
executives took the seminar stage in the Paradise Tower of Hard Rock
Hotel & Casino to impart their wisdom on trending topics in the tech
space.
The first day of discussions covered adult dating, domains, mobile
products, live cams, billing, and the pot and porn connection, playing to
standing-room-only audiences in Festival Hall C.
The day got off to a strong start with the “Power Dating” session
led by Sean Christian, the CEO of Revolution Force, the Sacramento-
based boutique marketing firm. His panelists included Alfonsus “AK”
Kusuma of Madzuma, Brandon McLevis of DatingGold, Igor Komarenko
of AuroraGlobal, Charlyn McNamara of AdultFriendFinder and Michael
O’Sullivan of The Hubpeople.
AK, a 16-year veteran who founded the private affiliate network
Madzuma in 2015, may have summarized the heart and soul of the
panel best, when he pointed out that relationships can make or break
any dealing.
“I think the best tools are yourself, your knowledge, your experience
and then your relationships,” AK said. “So what converts for my
landing page might be great for me this week but then I have to
know what converts for the advertisers themselves, which is why
relationships are very important. Because we’re not here for quick
money we’re here for the long-term.”
Christian noted that McNamara, the VP of marketing for
FriendFinder Networks, was one of the first media buyers in the adult
space. She said the key benefit of managing a network of sites is the
ability to customize each promotion.
“At FriendFinder Networks all our focus is on the user experience,”
McNamara said. “What better way to foster a user than to tailor the
landing page to what they’re looking for.”
MEET/GREET Sponsored by Etology, the Meet Market drew in more than 60 exhibitors. Opposite page,
AWE, Etology and PornDoe. This page, StripChat, Mobius Payments, Quantox and Terpon.
Photos by JFK/FUBARWebmasters.com.
INTERNEXT 2017
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