Adult-Film Industry Preps for Feature Downloads

CinemaNow

The New Movie Ticket? The admission policy of CinemaNow, a site handling feature-length downloads.

The image of a potential moviegoer downloading full-length movies from the Internet and burning them to a DVD is one that gives many Hollywood studio chiefs fits. But for executives in the adult-movie industry, the process is the key to a new business model.

Vivid Entertainment, one of the largest producers of adult entertainment in the United States, will let its customers burn DVDs of its content right off the Web. It's about making it easy for the customer, says Vivid's Co-Chair Bill Asher.

"Whether you're running a restaurant or you're selling adult content," Asher said, "the experience needs to be as enjoyable as possible."

In a plan that has already begun on a small scale, customers buy feature films online that they could then watch on standard DVD players. A main site for the purchases is Cinemanow, which offers Hollywood films, as well. Executives in the mainstream movie industry are watching to see how it works.

The adult-entertainment industry has embraced peer-to-peer technology for years. Hollywood insiders say their industry will likely pick up the trend within a year. The key, they say, is new high-definition technology, which experts say has much better copy protection than current DVDs.