Porno Industry Adapts to Digital Piracy

The
New York Times weighs in with some interesting observations on how the
pornography industry has adopted to and taken advantage of the new advances
in digital duplication and distribution, rather than bitching, moaning
and instigating lawsuits like the music and movie industries. There seem
to be some lessons in the quickly adaptive and lucrative porno
industry with implications for the evolving field of copyright and
intellectual property law.

Let the music industry sue those who share files, and let Hollywood
push for tough laws and regulations to curb movie copying. Playboy, like
many companies that provide access to virtual flesh and naughtiness,
is turning online freeloaders into subscribers by giving away pictures
to other sites that, in turn, drive visitors right back to Playboy.com.

The copyright rumble is playing out a little differently in the red-light
districts of cyberspace. That neighborhood is increasingly difficult
to confine, what with a fetishwear-clad Janet Jackson flashing a Super
Bowl audience of millions, and Paris Hilton making her own version
of a "Girls Gone Wild" video. Professional peddlers say they
are hard pressed to compete.

from  the New York Times