Page 63 - AVN October 2017

Sharp, who was born and raised in L.A., worked as a paralegal
doing real estate law before finding VIP Offers four years ago.
As the Meet Market wound down, dozens of attendees headed
to the city for dinner before getting ready for the GFY bash.
Around the World in One Day
The thought of what not to do when spending money on
your business turned into a goldmine of practical advice on the
first day of seminars at WMA, which were focused on different
international markets.
“I don’t think you should spend money where you don’t have
the opportunity to share your message,” MojoHost CEO Brad
Mitchell told the audience during the lead-off seminar, titled
“Taking Charge in North America.”
“When it comes to B2B marketing, some of the best
promotion is absolutely free. Share your story.”
Mitchell joined a parade of seasoned executives who brought
decades of real-world experience and proven results to the
sessions. With talk ranging from banking in Amsterdam to
nightlife in Bucharest to granny porn in Germany, there was
hardly a dull moment.
Moderated by veteran industry attorney Corey Silverstein,
the discussion about doing better business in North America
also featured Jamie Rodriguez (Flirt4Free), Jo Merlone (Kiwi
Sourcing), Katy (BongaCash) and Todd Spaits (YanksVR).
The founder and chief marketing officer of YanksCash, who
holds an MBA from the University of Washington, said the
foundation of his company is the 100-percent female-produced
content on its flagship site, Yanks.com.
“You need a compelling story,” Spaits said. “You need to have
a narrative that people want to be involved in.”
Tucked between the lineup of international panels, Webmaster
Access hosted a lively discussion with six industry heavyweights
who took one of the most far-reaching topics of the weekend:
“Age Verification and the U.K. Law.”
Tim Henning of ASACP moderated the panel, which included
Steve Winyard (AV Secure), David Cooke (AgeID), Vince
Charlton (AdultWork), Rudd Apsey (VeriMe), Alastair Graham
(Xcreds) and Eric Paul Leue (Free Speech Coalition).
Before a standing-room-only crowd, the speakers shared their
knowledge about how to prepare for the U.K.’s Digital Economy
Act.
Cooke, the director of digital & new media for AgeID in
Mindgeek’s London office, said it was “incredibly refreshing” to
be consulted by the U.K. government officials crafting the act.
“They want to make a law that works,” Cooke said.
Apsey, the managing director of VeriMe—who is well versed
in dealing with regulators, consumers and the moral lobbyists in
the U.K.—suggested that the whole world is watching how the
adult industry will respond to the law.
“There are a lot of eyeballs on this,” Apsey said. “If we get it
right in the U.K. the principle will be adopted in other parts of
the world, like gaming and gambling.”
That session paved the way for an entertaining panel focused
on how to establish your business footprint in Eastern Europe.
Experts from the region including Vuk Popovic (Quantox), Igor
Komarenko (Aurora Global), Alex Osminin (TrafficHunt), Max
Akhlestin (LeadBit) and Mugur Frunzetti (Studio 20) took the
stage for the high-energy exchange moderated by YNOT co-
owner Jay Kopita.
Frunzetti, who is based in Romania but earned his master’s
from UC Berkeley, owns a global network of live cam studios
operating in Europe and the U.S. He called Romania one of the
“safest” countries in the world to do business and “as long as
you follow rules and get good written advice from your lawyer,
you won’t have any problem” setting up shop in his country.
The “Profiting in Germany” panel, led by Yannick Ferreri,
Porndoe’s head of business development, featured insights from
Francis Kinder (TrafficPartner), Sebastian König (Exoclick),
Patrick Friedrich (ECardon Payments), Andy Wullmer (SGM
FEATURE
Media); Lars Bleck (affiliate) and Paul Kluzak
(CCBill).
Francis Kinder, the senior sales manager for
TrafficPartner, who has worked in marketing
since 2011, shared that in his view, “Age is
more important than geo.”
“Age targeting is also important,” said
Kinder, who is responsible for the acquisition of
new traffic sources for TrafficPartner, one of the
largest operators of Casual Dating communities
in Europe. “A product targeted for an older
audience will make the most money.”
The panel emphasized “localization,” or
focusing on niches that perform better in
specific regions.
“In Germany, the granny stuff never gets
old,” cracked Lars Bleck, who started with
an international online advertising network
in 2005 and this month began working as an
independent affiliate with a focus on dating and
media buying.
“It’s true,” Ferreri added. “It sells like fucking
crazy.”
Sebastian König, the German market
specialist for ExoClick, said, “For us, granny
dating is the big thing. Germans are kinky
fucks.”
In the hometown favorite “Navigating
the Netherlands” panel, AVN Hall of Fame
webmaster Patrick The Hun, founder of The
Hun’s Yellow Pages, said “it’s hard to get a
loan” here if you own an adult company.
“They only give you a loan if you can prove
you don’t need it,” The Hun said, drawing
laughter from another wall-to-wall audience.
He was joined by moderator Norman
Hauwert (Leaseweb) and fellow panelists Bram
(DatingCash), Jacco Kwakkel (YourChoice.nl),
Mike de Jong (Verotel), Leon Dijksman
(Telefuture) and MojoHost’s Brad Mitchell,
who recently set up a Dutch corporation for his
industry-leading web hosting company.
DAY & NIGHT Seminars continued through the second and third days of
the show. The Chaturbate Female Empowerment Lounge opened its doors,
and on the second night of the show came the Traffic Dinner, sponsored by
AWE by Jasmin, FanCentro by ModelCentro, CCBill, AVSecure and SMSCams.
Photos by JFK/FUBARWebmasters.com.
FEATURE | By Dan Miller
10.17 | AVN.com | 63