Porn Factor: Why Erotic Movies Won't Decide Next Gen DVD War

Jan. 31, 2007 — -- Whether you know it or not, there's a war going on. But it's not being fought on the streets of Baghdad or in the halls of the U.S. Senate. This battle is being waged in your living room -- or more specifically for your living room.

Two new DVD formats, both of which offer high definition video for those pricey HDTVs, are competing to see which one will replace standard DVDs as the new norm.

The key to winning the battle? Many experts believe it's the adult entertainment industry that will play a key role in determining whether Blu-ray DVD or HD DVD becomes the format of choice, as it was when VHS and Betamax fought it out in the '80s.

"I've heard that we were instrumental in the VHS/Beta format war," said Jackie Ramos, vice president of DVD production for adult movie studio Wicked Pictures. "I don't know if that's totally 100 percent true, but I know we did have some influence."

But this isn't like the VHS/Betamax melee of years ago, because Blu-ray and HD DVD aren't simply squaring off against each other; this war is being fought on multiple fronts, from video on demand and pay-per-view to the Internet.

"I don't think the consumer has chosen yet whether they're going to be purchasing Blu-ray or HD [DVD]. Certainly, the porn consumer hasn't made that choice," explained Drew Rosenfeld, creative director for Hustler Video. "I think their choice is at home, on their computer, on their iPod, on their cell phone, where they don't have a home full of all of this smut. They can keep it private on their computer, where they can dispose of it that fast."

Back in the 1980s, the public had a choice, VHS or Betamax, and they overwhelmingly chose VHS. The introduction of the videotape gave the public the chance to capture their favorite television shows, watch movies mere months after they had left theaters and, for the first time, watch porn in the privacy of their own homes and not in a seedy (and very public) adult movie house.