Is It Worth It?
by undermyspell - Adult Grind

As i'm sure you all know I have recently returned from Las Vegas where I attended the winter Internext session. If you have never been or were not in attendance at this particular show it was completely different than the summer Florida show in a number of aspects. First, the crowd seemed a lot tamer and I didn't hear reports of any extreme incidents like the ones that occurred in Florida. Second, the number and intensity of parties seemed somewhat diminished. Third, it was a lot more difficult to have chance meetings with people because the area from the rooms to the lobby to the convention hall was just too spread out and you may or may not see someone that you wanted to speak with.

I talked to several people prior to, during and after the convention and I heard numbers for the cost of the show from anywhere from $5000 to upwards of $50,000 for the booths, tradeshow giveaways and party sponsorships. It really makes you wonder what they gained from it. I saw the most simple booth design i've ever seen at a convention and it was probably one of the most successful booths there. D-Money set up a simple table with a skirt around it and a black and white placard behind the table that read Players Ball on it. This is where you came if you wanted to buy into a "sponsor" package for the Players Ball. The packages basically were purchasing tickets to attend and were available for $100 each. Some of the more elaborate booths involved the billing processing companies and the larger sponsors and content companies. Adult Platinum/GFY/Jupiter Hosting had an excellent booth that flowed between the 3 companies seamlessly. ARS provided a couple of couches with Playstations to take a load off and relax a few minutes. TabooRevenue was definitely a crowd pleaser with their slot machine and tables that had the first and one of the only ashtrays on the convention floor. It was nice to be able to take a load off and have a smoke after cruising the floor of the convention and talking to tons of people.

I think that the money spent on booths and giveaways paid off a lot more than the party sponsorships. Although people enjoyed themselves at the parties and had a good time courtesy of such names as TabooRevenue, GFY, Topbucks, NoCreditCard, Webmaster Central, ARS and more they were there primarily to blow off steam and drink and have a good time letting loose. After consuming more than their fair share of alcohol it was entirely possible they forgot who their hosts and hostesses were. I still think the best type of after show gatherings are the smaller suite parties and dinners like the TGP VIP dinner that is hosted annually by SleazyDream. You can relax, eat, drink and still be able to carry on a somewhat business oriented conversation with peers. It's a bit tough to even attempt to do any business at the Players Ball or other outrageous and amazing events that occur. Overall though I think that the money spent by the exhibitors and event sponsors was well worth it.

Personally, for me, the highlight of the convention was when Adult Chamber named Marsha "Princess" Youngs as the 2003 Webmaster of the year. This award was a year long effort where Adult Chamber accepted nominations for quarterly/seasonal finalists and then accepted public votes on those finalists for the overall winner. Marsha won an amazing prize package but it actually paled in comparison to the honor of being recognized by her peers for the outstanding work she does on a day to day basis. Her prize package included: A trip to Hedonism III in Jamaica, $1500 cash, an HP digital camera, a 17 inch flat panel monitor and a framed certificate. Jay "LAJ" Kopita gave her a good run for her money and came in a close 2nd. For his reward he received an amazing trip to Cancun. I want to extend my warmest wishes and heartfelt congratulations to both of these webmasters. They are both personal friends and I am so proud of them for their achievements. The other two finalists were Re "Raven" Highland of SinText and Voltar of Voltar's Newbie Webmaster Resources. I had the pleasure of meeting Raven in Florida and she's an amazing lady. Although I have not gotten the opportunity to meet Voltar yet his site gives webmasters a good leg up in the business and he's most deserving of his finalist position as well.

Although the Vegas convention is said to be the larger of the two conventions I actually felt like for me personally the Florida convention was larger. There appeared to be more exhibitors at the Florida show or that may have just been an illusion since the show floor was immense in Vegas compared to Florida. I also thought that by having the entire hotel reserved specifically for Internext for the summer show in Florida made it much easier to find and make your contacts because you know that everyone in the hotel at Florida is involved in the adult industry in one way or another so you can just amble up to them and introduce yourself and strike up a conversation about the business. At the Venetian it was much tougher because a lot of webmasters stayed at surrounding hotels due to lack of and cost of the rooms at the Venetian. It was also tougher because not only did we have an influx of pornographers in the hotel but we also had the every day travelers and you just couldn't be certain if they were in the industry unless you knew them or they were wearing their nametags. I got more than my fair share of strange looks in the elevator while wearing my show gear or having my necktag on that said Hustler/Flynt Digital or discussing some aspect of the convention or party that I had just attended. Although, some of these looks were very interested looks by men you could almost see their wives, who were bedecked in their finest jewels and furs, puff up at the mere thought of sharing an elevator with a bunch of smut peddlers. Truth be knownst the women probably have engaged in their share of kinks and perversions but are too concerned with societal rules to ever admit it.

I also appreciated the fact that the usual hooligans seemed to have left their outlandish antics at the door and enjoyed themselves without going to extremes. There were rumors of destruction of property, drug use and outrageous behavior in Florida but issues in Vegas were of the minor sort with the exception of one content girl that apparently overdosed and had to be taken to the hospital. I think as a group we handled ourselves quite well and with as much integrity as we could muster when we were there to promote sex and flesh.

I also should mention for those of you that missed the Xbiz awards show that you missed an enjoyable evening full of surprises. It was highlighted by a couple of events for me. The first was getting to see my new friend Vendzilla of N2bigtits.com *who is well over 6 feet and could be construed as a very scary individual* dancing to Too Short with a drink in his hand. It was an amazing sight to behold. The second would be getting to see Larry Flynt receive a lifetime achievement award and hearing him speak about his trials, tribulations and triumphs in the porn industry. He has been an amazing role model and public speaker for the rights of those of us who choose to express ourselves in a way different than what society feels is normal.

I got to reconnect with and meet for the first time some really amazing people and I am truly blessed that I had that opportunity. I got to meet Shemp for the first time and he's a wonderful man who I feel honored and blessed to call my friend now. I once again ran into and spoke with the ever charismatic Lensman from GFY, Adult Platinum and Playboy Cash. Those of you who have not had the pleasure of having a conversation with Lensman really should try to make an opportunity to do so. You would think by the tone of GFY that he would be a loud mouthed, young punk but in reality he is probably one of the more well spoken and reserved men that I had the pleasure of speaking to. He's truly a stand out and role model in the industry. Although, i'm sure he has his naughty side, he assumes a very professional air at the conventions. I had the pleasure of re-meeting several acquaintances from Florida and i'm glad to say they are all working hard and striving to build their own empires in the ever expanding adult industry.

It was a long and hard few days for the convention and evening events but I survived and it was well worth it. I made some wonderful contacts and met some people that I will be proud to call my friends. You all know who you are and I thank each and every person that I had the pleasure of shaking hands with and exchanging hugs with. If you've never had the opportunity to attend an Internext convention I would highly recommend the experience. Personally though if I had my choice of one show or the other I would choose the Florida show just for the simple fact that it's a lot easier to conduct business and the scenery is amazing.

Jan "undermyspell" Grady
Managing Editor - Adult Grind