CHICAGO — Rumors that Playboy was looking to buy Various Inc., the then-parent of FriendFinder, two years ago are false, according to FriendFinder’s CEO. PaidContent.org, a New York-based news site owned by U.K.-based media company Guardian News and Media Ltd., reported Wednesday that Playboy was ready to purchase the FriendFinder properties before Penthouse Media Group purchased it for $500 million in December 2007. Penthouse later changed its name to FriendFinder, and the company is still in a quiet period before it launches an announced initial public offering. According to the article, PaidContent said that Playboy didn’t have the wherewithal to purchase Various. The news site said that it confirmed the story with “multiple sources.” “The talks didn’t become too serious after Playboy realized its market cap was nowhere near where it could afford to buy a big cash generating machine like Friendfinder, whose adult-related dating sites has been its cash cow for most part,” the article said. But FriendFinder CEO Marc Bell told XBIZ that the rumor is just that. “I have no idea where they got that information,” he said. “To be honest, Playboy wasn’t one of the bidders. There were five funds in contention, and we were the ones who purchased the company.” Playboy’s Theresa Hennessey told XBIZ that the company doesn’t comment on rumors. … [Read more...]
FriendFinder CEO Says Playboy Was Never in Running to Buy Various Inc.
Red Light Parodies Reality Again With 'Celebrity Apprentass'
Noted - This is an AVN story - credit to them for this submission By Peter Warren 08/24/2009 CHATSWORTH, Calif.—Red Light District once again goes after reality TV and the stars who've denigrated themselves on it, in the form of Celebrity Apprentass With Donald Hump, produced by Derty Birty Films and due in stores Sept. 8. This follows Red Light's hit parody Celebrity Pornhab With Dr. Screw, and brings back the same directorial team of Maestro Claudio and Shlomo Mortichay. Kyle Stone leads the cast as "Donald Hump," with other principals including Misty Stone as "Cuntorosa," Brooke Belle as "Malicious Quivers," Kelly Skyline as "Cate Vassalin," John Strong as "Jizz Simmons," Devlin Weed as "Mennis Bigrod" and Herschel Savage as "Andrew 'Nice' Lay." Vannah Sterling appears here for the second time as Nadya "Octomon" Suleman (or "Cockomom" in this case), and told AVN the finished product is "really well done and a lot of fun." As to becoming porn's go-to-girl for Octomom spoofery, she said, "I think it's great, because she is constantly in the eye of the media in one way or another. I'm thankful to both for shooting me, I really appreciate it, and I'm just happy I can continue the role." Also starring in Celebrity Apprentass are: Kylee Reece, Nicki Hunter, Jack Vegas and Dex Magnum as "Donald Hump Jr., the 2nd Esquire." A "clean" trailer for Celebrity Apprentass With Donald Hump is available here. … [Read more...]
Porn Star of the Week – Mika Tan
Mika Tan Age: 36Height: 5' 4" Weight: 121 lbs. Measurements: 36D-26-36 Hair Color: Black BIOGRAPHY Mika Tan entered the adult industry in 1999, doing only girl/girl and fetish work for her first four years. After a brief hiatus, she returned to the scene with boy/girl added to her repertoire, and eventually tacked on anal, as well. "At first it was a little hard for me to do porn because I was really sexually shy," Mika has said. "I only had eight partners before porn." An exotic mixture of Taiwanese, Okinawan, Japanese and Samoan, Mika has long been a fixture of Asian-themed movies. Just a few of her major credits within the genre include Reign of Tera (Teravision/Vivid), Jack's Playground: Asian Adventure (Digital Playground), Asian Fever: Tails of the Orient (Hustler Video) and Memoirs of Mika Tan (SexZ Pictures). She's also proven a reliable asset, however, in big scripted features like Insertz (Sinsation Pictures) and Yours Truly (Wicked Pictures). At the 2007 AVN Awards, Mika received the first and only Underrated Starlet of the Year trophy ... the award was subsequently renamed Unsung Starlet of the Year. More on Mika Tan can be found at myspace.com/mikatan and www.mikatan.com. … [Read more...]
Suit: Facebook Invades Privacy, Sells Personal Data
SANTA ANA, Calif. — Members of the adult entertainment industry have locked themselves at the hip with Facebook to communicate and market their companies. But new allegations that Facebook permits third parties access to mine information without users' knowledge or consent might just change that. According to a class-action claim at Orange County Superior Court, Facebook invades the privacy of its customers and misappropriates people's images and personal information for marketing and commercial purposes. The suit said Facebook knows its users don’t want their personal information circulated around the web, yet its terms of use allow Facebook to retain user-posted data long after it has been taken off of the site. “Data collected from Facebook users is the key commercial asset that Facebook uses for market valuation, internal marketing purposes, and for licensing and direct sale of data to third parties," according to the complaint. The suit was filed by photographer Elisha Melkonian, who says Facebook permitted her photos to be downloaded, copied and distributed without her permission, despite numerous attempts to stop it. In addition, according to the suit, Facebook users are “unwitting participant of Facebook tracking technologies and have had their purchase and/or other activities published to other Facebook users without their consent.” The suit also said that Facebook now has commenced direct advertisements that include sexually oriented material to users through “social ads,” which are paired up to persons designated as a user’s friend. "The statement that Facebook does not sell your information is misleading and false,'" the suit said. "Facebook has misled users with policies that imply that users are in control of their personal data." Melkonian wants Facebook restrained from collecting or selling user data and from permitting downloading of copyrighted photos without permission. She also seeks class damages of $750 for every unauthorized use of names or photos. … [Read more...]
Global Electronic Technology Renews With Merrick Bank
CYPRESS, Calif. — State-of-the-art payment processing solutions provider Global Electronic Technology, Inc. (GET) has announced its signing of a multi-year contract extension with Merrick Bank. Under the terms of this renewal agreement, GET will continue to provide processing services to commercial and institutional merchants around the globe. "We are very pleased to continue to sponsor Global Electronic Technology, Inc.," Senior Vice President of Merrick Bank Merchant Services, Fred Horn, said. "Global Electronic Technology, Inc. has played a key role in growing Merrick's acquiring business for the past five years and we look forward to continuing and extending our long-running relationship." "We appreciate the mutual confidence and trust we share with such a valuable partner. Merrick Bank continues to provide GET and our clients with outstanding merchant banking," Chief Executive Officer of Global Electronic Technology, Inc., Steven H. Bryson, said. "We are proud to continue this relationship with Merrick Bank." According to the company, GET provides merchants with fully integrated and scalable enterprise systems to offer comprehensive credit card services; including acquisitions, activations, card authorizations, receivables, funding, remittance, statement generation, reporting, customer service, and call center support; along with ACH, fraud scrubbing, a shopping cart, cash advance services and more. Merrick Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of CardWorks, Inc., and is a top-25 issuer of Visa cards, as well as an authorized issuer of MasterCard cards. It serves approximately 1 million cardholders and has over $1 billion in assets. Merrick Bank is a Utah Financial Institution and a member of the FDIC. … [Read more...]
Wildline! Hosts First-Ever Traffic Summit with Search Leader
Biggest brands in adult met to discuss the future of adult search This is a AVN submission - they get credit for this story. By Tom Hymes 08/25/2009 SAN FRANCISCO—Wildline!, the largest search engine marketing agency in the online adult entertainment industry, today announced that more than a dozen of the largest adult entertainment advertisers convened at the headquarters of the world’s largest search engine company on Aug. 21 to discuss adult search policy, editorial rules and the future direction of search. The summit is expected to play a pivotal role in guiding and defining the future of adult entertainment search. This ground-breaking event was brokered by John Van Arnam, strategic web traffic consultant for Wildline! and president of I-Bridge International. “This session brought together top adult entertainment advertisers and the world’s largest search engine company,” said John Van Arnam. “We had an open, highly productive dialog about editorial standards, effective marketing campaigns and creating an exceptional end-user experience. “Our research shows adult entertainment surfers are six times more active in search than non-adult surfers," Van Arnam added. "These people are power online shoppers who search for a wide range of items—from adult entertainment to electronics to travel reservations—all in the same session. Consequently, this group is strategic to the ultimate success of all search engine providers." Adult advertisers who participated in the summit had the opportunity to learn about successful approaches and styles for search engine marketing, policy and editorial. In addition, Wildline! has published a Best Practices for Adult Search Engine Marketing Guide, which is available at www.wildlinecorp.com/sem. … [Read more...]
Installation Tweak Offers Free Trial of Any Windows 7 Edition
REDMOND, Wash. — A Microsoft Windows 7 installation disk can be tweaked to give users a free trial of a more expensive edition. The Windows Secrets newsletter published a step-by-step guide through the process on the release to manufacturing version of Windows 7, which is available now to computer makers and other IT professionals. By deleting a Windows Setup-specific configuration text file used to determine what edition will be installed, those that are technically inclined can transform the file, which will allow them to try other versions of Windows 7 before investing in them. "I think this would be of great interest to corporate IT administrators," said Brian Livingston, Windows Secret editor, in a report. "They will be able to put [Windows 7] Professional on one machine, and Home Premium on another to test each out before deciding which to buy for what group of employees." Windows 7 users have to option to purchase an Anytime Upgrade — which allows them to upgrade from Windows 7 Home Premium to Professional — for $90, but with no trial or grace period. Windows 7 makes its public debut Oct. 22. The full version of Windows 7 Home Premium is priced at $199, with an upgrade from Vista or XP costing $119. The full version of Windows 7 Professional is $299, with upgrades going for $199. Windows 7 Ultimate is priced at $319, with the upgrade version at $219. … [Read more...]
Porn Star of the Week – AVN submission
Andy San Dimas Age: 22Height: 5' 4" Weight: 116 lbs. Measurements: 34B Hair Color: Black BIOGRAPHY She likes to fuck on film. Other than that, she's pretty normal. So Andy San Dimas describes herself on her MySpace page. The pretty brunette served as inspiration for Eon McKai's quirk-&-jerk feature On My Dirty Knees and starred opposite Mick Blue in Joanna Angel's Fuck Me in the Bathroom 3. San Dimas got her start in adult as a fetish model, often booking her own amateur gigs. The Minneapolis native credits Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure for her curious porn name (she doesn't live in San Dimas). She is represented by Spiegler Girls. … [Read more...]
Police: Wanted reality TV star found dead
Jenkins was accused of killing ex-wife before fleeing to Canada BREAKING NEWS updated 22 minutes ago VANCOUVER, British Columbia - Canadian police say fugitive murder suspect Ryan Jenkins has been found dead of an apparent suicide in a motel in British Columbia. Sgt. Duncan Pound of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police border integrity unit says police responded to a call about a dead person in Hope, east of Vancouver, and then called investigators who were part of the massive manhunt for Jenkins. The real estate developer and reality show contestant was wanted in California on first-degree murder charges after the mutilated body of his ex-wife was found near Los Angeles. Story continues below ? advertisement | your ad here Jenkins, 32, disappeared last week but his boat was found Wednesday at a marina not far from the U.S.-Canada border south of Vancouver. Pound says police don't yet know how long Jenkins was at the motel before his body was discovered. Jenkins was accused of strangling Jasmine Fiore and then reporting her missing the evening of Aug. 15 before fleeing. Fiore's naked, mutilated body was found in a suitcase inside a trash bin in Buena Park, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles. Fiore's teeth had been pulled out and her fingers cut off, apparently to impede her identification. Investigators used the serial numbers on her breast implants to identify her, according to the Orange County district attorney's office. Jenkins and Fiore met in Las Vegas in March and they married a few weeks later. Lisa Lepore says her 28-year-old daughter had the marriage annulled in May. However, she says Jenkins convinced her daughter to take him back. Click for related content Read more news from across the U.S. Friends said Fiore was a model who worked mainly in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, doing gigs such as being bodypainted at parties. She also was an aspiring actress and had a bit part in a small 2008 horror science-fiction movie, "The Abandoned," according to the Internet Movie Database. Jenkins was recently a contestant on VH1 reality show "Megan Wants a Millionaire," in which wealthy young men tried to win over a materialistic blonde. The network canceled the show Friday. He also was a participant in an as-yet-unaired competitive reality series, "I Love Money 3." A VH1 spokesman said no decision has been made on whether or not to run the show. NBC's KNSD TV in San Diego contributed to this report. … [Read more...]
Police scour Canada for millionaire murder suspect
By GILLIAN FLACCUS and ROB GILLIES, AP 2 hours ago Loading... This August 2009 photo provided by TMZ, shows Jasmine Fiore, left, and her h... BUENA PARK, Calif. — Canadian authorities on Saturday intensified the manhunt for the millionaire reality TV star accused of murdering a former swimsuit model and stuffing her naked, mutilated body in a suitcase. "We're leaving no stone unturned, but we have to play our cards close to our chest right now," said Royal Canadian Mounted Police Sgt. Duncan Pound. The search for Ryan Alexander Jenkins, a 32-year-old real estate developer and investor from Calgary, is centered around Vancouver and British Columbia, said Peter Van Loan, Canada's public safety minister. The Mounted Police are leading the manhunt for Jenkins, who is suspected of strangling Jasmine Fiore and then reporting her missing the evening of Aug. 15 before fleeing. Jenkins and Fiore met in Las Vegas in March and they married a few weeks later. The couple separated shortly afterward, but had reportedly recently reconciled. Fiore's body was found in a trash bin in Buena Park, an Orange County city about 20 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Her teeth had been pulled out and her fingers cut off, apparently to impede her identification. Investigators used the serial numbers on her breast implants to identify her, said Farrah Emami, spokeswoman for the Orange County district attorney's office. Authorities believe Jenkins fled via car, boat and on foot to enter his native Canada. Both Jenkins and Fiore were involved in the outer circles of the entertainment business. Fiore was a model who worked mainly in Las Vegas and Los Angeles, doing gigs such as being bodypainted at parties, said Andrea Guevara, a friend who worked with her about five years ago coaching "margarita wrestling" teams — young women tussling each other in swimming pools of green-colored water. Fiore's looks meant she was often invited to parties, some hosted by celebrities, but she had more than a pretty face and alluring figure, Guevara told The Associated Press in an interview. "She was very intelligent and well spoken," Guevara said. "She had a positive energy and was always working. She didn't need to have a boyfriend. She was very happy being herself." Fiore was also an aspiring actress. She had a bit part in a small 2008 horror science-fiction movie, "The Abandoned," according to the Internet Movie Database. Jenkins was recently a contestant on VH1 reality show "Megan Wants a Millionaire," in which wealthy young men tried to win over a materialistic blonde. The network canceled the show Friday. Jenkins said on the show that he possessed assets of $1 million to $2.5 million, said Tom Hession, chief inspector for the U.S. Marshals Service's regional fugitive task force. Jenkins also was a participant in an as-yet-unaired competitive reality series, "I Love Money 3." A VH1 spokesman said no decision has been made on whether … [Read more...]
