The pornography business is a
tech bellwether, often sensing the shift in consumer sentiment long before the mainstream world makes a move.
So as the adult entertainment industry’s stars and power brokers walked the red carpet at the recent AVN Awards in Las Vegas – the adult entertainment industry’s equivalent of the Oscars – we polled a few, asking them what they thought would be the next big trend to sweep the industry.
It’s hard to recall a worse time to jump into
the porn business.
Piracy continues to run rampant. Studios are folding at a pace similar to the implosion of the dot-com bubble. And even the future of the industry’s trade show and biggest annual awards show are in jeopardy—as insiders wonder whether the Adult Entertainment Expo and AVN awards will be held next year.
Popularity in the porn industry is often fleeting. 
Some performers experience a meteoric rise and fall in the course of a year. Others connect with the audience on a different level and manage a multi-year ride at the top.
Though there is no real formula for success in this industry, these 12 performers have proven to be more than just a flash in the pan, with tremendous staying power over the past few years. What’s more there are no signs their careers are in danger of waning anytime soon.
Women are the main attraction in the 
adult entertainment industry, but when it comes to the people behind the scenes, it’s very much a male-dominated field. While there are some cracks in the glass ceiling, men still hold most of the power positions in porn.
Some of the power players in porn are familiar names, but a significant number have very low public profiles. All of them, though, have significant influence and authority throughout the industry – and sometimes, that’s entirely by accident.
A little under a year ago, Apple began 
cleaning up its app store, seemingly banning app after app that had any form of titillation. Citing complaints from customers who found the apps degrading and upset about what children were able to see, the company vigorously purged hundreds of apps that focused on subjects such as women in swimsuits.
But porn is like water. It finds a way into everything and is actually thriving on the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.
Sex might sell, but someone 
still needs to sell it.
At the Adult Entertainment Expo, selling sex is the name of the game —and the customers are everywhere. Buyers from adult stores and boutiques, wholesalers and fans of adult entertainment mingle together to meet the stars of the sex industry and see what’s new.
Regardless of your feelings about the porn 
industry, you can’t deny it’s technological prowess. Long before the rest of the corporate world has figured out how best to adopt the latest tech trend, porn companies have dissected it and found a way to make money from it.
As companies at the industry’s annual expo in Las Vegas promote the latest in wireless technology this week at the Consumer Electronics Show, porn companies are already well established in the space—and planning for the future.
Chris Morris: Journalist 