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.
A slumbering giant appears to be stirring in the 
video game industry — and that could be bad news for Microsoft and Sony.
After quietly sitting on the sidelines for the entire console war, the television industry is starting to get into the fight. Vizio announced plans this week to integrate the OnLive game streaming service into all of its 2011 HD TVs and Blu-ray players, as well as forthcoming smart phones and tablets from the company.
Things are starting to slow down at CES – kind of. 
The crowds will be huge today and the show isn’t over until tomorrow, but rather than the flood of announcements, seminars and keynotes, Saturday and Sunday are basically days for attendees to seek out the items they’ve missed.
This is when quality tends to win out over hype at the show – as word of mouth spreads about smaller devices that don’t have the marketing budgets of Panasonic, Sharp or other multi-billion dollar companies.
With more than 2,700 companies displaying 
new products at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, there’s a lot of competition for attention. While many are fighting for a coveted “Best of Show” nod, that label is too often given to products that simply have a “cool” factor but won’t necessarily have a lasting impact.
So as we’ve wandered the floor this year, we’ve kept our eyes open for items that can have a momentous impact on their market segments. Here are a few gadgets we think will move beyond novelty status.
[Reporting from Las Vegas’ CES, Gamasutra editor-at-large 
Chris Morris looks at video games’ presence at the major electronics show, examining how the show hints at the blossoming of a post-console future for games.]
For a trade show that’s not about video games, there sure are a lot of people talking about and playing them here at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show.
OnLive, Kinect and Playstation are being discussed nearly as much as tablets, 3D TVs and cameras. It’s some of the clearest proof yet showing that as video games evolve and grow, the industry is moving closer and closer to the world of mainstream entertainment.
As technology gets more complex, it’s fitting that an 
underlying theme of this year’s Consumer Electronics Show is making people’s lives easier.
Tech advances can be a dual-edged sword. Bleeding edge products might be phenomenal, but using them can often be frustrating (look no further than the bulky glasses required for 3D TV). There will be announcements galore at this year’s show – but more and more companies are realizing that the key to success is focusing on products that not only fill a need, but don’t require users to memorize a hefty manual before they turn it on.
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.
Chris Morris: Journalist 