SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
When Kink.com bought The Armory in San Francisco in 2006 for more than $14 million, they may have been showing just how much foresight they had about events to come.
Less than a decade later, things in the porn world have turned ugly, mostly as a result of piracy and the deluge of free content on the internet. As media consultant Martin P. Bruber said, “The pie is shrinking and everyone is scrambling for the few people still willing to pay money for porn.”
Reports abound in the adult video production community of underhanded business tactics, strong arming performers, and even threats of physical violence.
For Peter Acworth, founder and CEO of Kink.com, the response is simple: “Bring it. We have a fucking armory.”
No one has dared take on the formidable producer of kinky porn. “We see a lot of backstabbing in the girl/girl community and especially in the Asian and foot fetish niches, but people have basically left Kink.com alone,” said Galen Sloan, owner of PornInsider.net. “The reason why is simple. People are scared. They have a fucking armory.”
Kink.com has spent a fortune driving other producers out of business with a massive affiliate program and by cutting the staff to a bare minimum. Acworth, however, says their position will remain purely defensive. “We aren’t out to destroy anyone else,” Acworth told The Daily Flogger, “we just want to protect the empire we’ve built.”
The one change that has occurred is the pat down and searches required of all visitors before entering the premises.
“We make sure no one has any weapons on them before coming it. It has actually inspired a new site for us called ‘Strip Search.’ We’ve been collecting footage and hope to go live with it next month.”
Photo credit: Mark Pritchard cc: by nc sa
