Ofcom & The UK Adult Industry

ofcom tbh play a role in the industry, but tbh i don't think ofcom can blamed for everything (which some of you do) as tbh the industry is in a load of shit without ofcom and it quite easy go under as there really aren't the viewers there used to be.

(05-02-2011 21:29 )RCTV Wrote:  ofcom tbh play a role in the industry, but tbh i don't think ofcom can blamed for everything (which some of you do) as tbh the industry is in a load of shit without ofcom and it quite easy go under as there really aren't the viewers there used to be.

Surely the main reason that there aren't so many viewers is that the product offerred is shit.

Ofcon are complicit in ensuring that that has happened.

If full R18 was shown on UK television then I'm certain that the number of subscribers would increase enourmously.

The UK public are not as moronic as you, or Ofcon, think they are.

The product is shit not because of ofcom, because the people who do the channels offer things that are shit, it's not to do with ofcom, they only put rules in which are very reasonable, and have been a long time (and before the content was shit)

(05-02-2011 22:49 )RCTV Wrote:  The product is shit not because of ofcom, because the people who do the channels offer things that are shit, it's not to do with ofcom, they only put rules in which are very reasonable, and have been a long time (and before the content was shit)

?

There is no alternative to the "babechannels". That's it.

(05-02-2011 21:29 )RCTV Wrote:  ofcom tbh play a role in the industry, but tbh i don't think ofcom can blamed for everything (which some of you do) as tbh the industry is in a load of shit without ofcom and it quite easy go under as there really aren't the viewers there used to be.

Hit a business from one direction and they might get back up. Hit them at every opportunity from a second direction and they will go under. Thats what Ofcom are doing, coming down on channels with full blown investigations everytime they receive half a dozen vindictive complaints.

(05-02-2011 22:49 )RCTV Wrote:  The product is shit not because of ofcom, because the people who do the channels offer things that are shit, it's not to do with ofcom, they only put rules in which are very reasonable, and have been a long time (and before the content was shit)

Regulate and hound a sector to death and yes, all innovation and variation will disappear. Imagine you own a small independent channel. You see other channels try something new, then get hammered by Ofcom and put on final warning. The channel cant even go back to its previous style/level of broadcasting without being accused of going tame and loosing shedloads of paying viewers.
Do you
a) Risk your investment by trying something new?
b) Play safe and get a mediocre but safe return?

Second, small channels are vulnerable when Ofcom is the willing tool of any vexatious complainant. There is no substance to these complaints.
As complaints go
"Dear Sir,
I tuned into an adult sex channel every night last week and saw mild sex. I was appauled. Sex should not be broadcast on sex channels. Yours, William St John Trumpington Smyth, Colonel (Rtd)"
is quite simply not in the same league as
"In the middle of the general election channel --- broadcast interviews with the candidate from one party but not others"
or
"During a major phonein competition the winner was decided and filmed receiving their award 30 minutes before the phone lines closed and viewers thought the show was live"
or
"In a talent show broadcast during the early evening a man bit the head off a live snake and proceeded to skin it with his teeth"

(All genuine complaints by the way).

Ofcom create an atmosphere where all adult broadcasters are vulnerable, but the small ones specially so. They have fewer reserves, fewer resources and dont have wealthy backers who can carry a loss, fine or extra training/compliance costs.

Result is over the years the small operators go out of business or get bought up by the big boys (and girls), and the ones left are less inclined to rock the boat.

Combine that with an economic downturn and its back to tried and tested, safe and reliable. Ofcom didnt create the poor economic conditions, but they do create the combination effect.

[EDIT] Sorry, lost sight of what I meant to say, really shouldnt post 2 separate replies to 2 separarte points. Yes, to some extent the product is unimaginative tame shit, but thats because innovations is punished. If acceptable it is copied. And the sector is small and under pressure and scrutiny. Take that away and the adult channels would be more carefree and would experiment more. Its Ofcoms fault.

AHHH,I see military bitch is back with the usual,wondered whether she/he whatever would start again.

The only thing that I can see that is shit RCTV are your ramblings!!!!

Eccles they are being attacked by ofcom and small channels don't stand a chance, because the larger channels have made it an awful industry to work in, and which people do struggle to get out of.

What is on offer now is crap compared to what it used to be as all the channels are the same, when they used to be different, prices used to be lower and girls weren't being paid as much, Also there were more services such as text, multimedia text and pics, which seems to of gone down on the channels, and the channels that have them have put them up.

nailpouchofmine I don't speak shit I speak the truth, just because you don't like it don't mean it's shit.

(04-02-2011 03:02 )eccles Wrote:  You seem to have listed a number of reasons why you did find it necessary to protect your idea.

Non-disclosure and non-compete agreements are nothing new or novel when seeking backers for a novel business venture, particularly if approaching angels with industry experience, or even worse, current operators. And as you say, Ofcom could easily slip in pre-emptive clauses into the next revision of the Broadcasting Code, or start clamping down on a category of material in advance. Noone mentioned copyright, and its a pretty feeble and overrated tool in broadcasting that is easily circumvented. Every sitcom ever since 1960 has been based on Terry and June. There are gentlemans agreements to respect formats, but thats all they are.

Oh, and Good Luck.

You originally made an assumption about why things have dragged on to this point, which implied it was just a copyright issue, eccles. I gave you a reply stating there have been several different factors resulting in the current status quo.

It would also be misguided and naive to think that a new format with original content for broadcast on TV or the Internet is not copyright protected. I've been assured of where I stand on this particular project and have the angles covered.

Copyright law is far more strict than it used to be. If a deal is done, and proves to be a success, then any other channel looking to either replicate the new format or broadcast the same content would need to get permission from the originator and company backing the project. It would be a breach of copyright to do otherwise - even if they didn't intend to make any money out of it.

Oh, and thanks...

(02-02-2011 20:49 )blackjaques Wrote:  Go for it, Winston. I wish you luck.
In my own, very brief, dealings with Ofcon they are a most intransigent bunch; they have their view about porn on UK television and will not budge from that.

I have no idea what you propose to do but suspect that, if it's on television, you will be hammered by Ofcon. If it's a web-based solution then it may lack that eroticism that TV provides. (I fully admit that I may be talking bullshit here).

There are several ways it can be done, blackjaques...

Despite the current situation with OFCOM, I think the TV side of the business would be the next logical step for me at this stage. I don't rule out the Internet, but I'm yet to be convinced this is the best way forward for several reasons.

I'm sure OFCOM would like to ban all forms of adult sex material from TV, but legally they can't. If R18 material is legal to buy, then it should be broadcast on adult pay-per-view/subscription channels as well. However, as previously pointed out by myself and a few others, this is also complicated by certain people in the adult industry who are only interested in protecting their own DVD and Internet revenue.

We all know that OFCOM don't like the adult industry, and they'll try and restrict it as much as possible, but it's not just about explicit content. It's also the suspected rigging of premium rate services that results in a lot of heat for the regular babe channels. The combination of adult content and premium rate services on TV will always get more attention from OFCOM.

In the betting industry, I was part of several business ventures involving premium rate services and websites. I've seen similar situations to what has happened in this industry when the regulators/authorities clamp down after breaches. I was once caught up in routine monitoring after rogue operators got busted for malpractice. When that happens, it's a case of guilty until proven innocent. The same applies with OFCOM and routine monitoring of these channels.