OPINION: What's next in mobile porn - 3D, AR and extreme hardcore.

For the last eight years, Cherry Media has been 100 per cent focused on adult mobile content, so we think about these questions constantly.

And here are our views on what will and won't work in the coming years:

* Direct To Consumer

The iPhone has shifted the way people search for mobile content. This, without a doubt, has caused a global decline in adult on-portal content, which let’s face it, was never popular with operators to start with!

Cherry's long-held belief that the mobile web would become the main marketplace for adult has come to fruition. But it's extremely crowded. Long-gone are the days where you could simply ‘build it and they will come’. So anyone with a D2C store needs to get three things right: localised, one-click billing wherever possible; a tried & tested marketing strategy with local knowledge; a constantly evolving service in line with local customer trends and technology.

* Augmented Reality

Here is an area that really does have the potential to change the landscape of adult entertainment! I’m totally sold on the huge scope of this technology.

The underlying concept in all adult entertainment is fantasy. The better we feed that, the more money we make. For me, augmented reality by its very nature blurs the line between reality and fantasy, and is therefore for the adult industry.

Here's one example: the user will no longer have to merely watch a lap-dance on his PC/mobile. Instead, he can select his favourite porn star and have her do the dance on his lap. Now THAT’S an immersive fantasy!

* Live Mobile Video Chat

An established business model achieving an ARPU of more than $50 per month – blowing away other digital adult entertainment models.

It's wildly commercially successful because so many guys really do believe they are in some kind of relationship with these girls and therefore have regular contact with them. Adding the mobile factor can only increase time and money spent.

* Hardcore content

Frankly, it doesn’t do it any more. Heterosexual sex and all basic fantasies and perversions don’t cut the mustard from a commercial perspective. This is actually a little worrying in the context of society, but the truth is we are seeing many top name producers focusing more and more on extreme and bizarre productions.

* Parodies

The rise of online tube sites (many illegal) and over saturation of content distribution has sent producers looking for niche ideas. One of the biggest is the parody. Porn has never been known for its movie plotlines, but comical and humorous porn is something that has a huge following and parodies cash in on that audience.

* 3D

Will 3D develop into a new revenue stream for the adult industry or will it just be a fad? From our experience so far, the latter. So remember you're targeting early adopters who have invested in 3D TV – only a few of which will be potential adult consumers. It’s a small percentage of a small percentage.

In addition, to get any kind of reasonable 3D effect, you really do need to shoot content specifically. Yes, there are services available where you can adapt your existing portfolio, but from what we have seen, it very rarely works well, so what’s the point?

In summary, you need a lot of money and resources for a limited market that has a limited shelf-life.

* Apps

Our advice is ‘approach with caution’. If you work with a good partner, you could get great download numbers for a free app, which makes it a really effective marketing tool. But if your objective is to make money, tread carefully. The market is struggling to monetise  apps and many elements still need to fall into place before this is possible for the average adult business.

You can read more about Cherry’s views on this here.

If you'd like to get in touch with Cherry Media, email info@cherrysauce.com