Current TV offers a look into the world of the adult entertainment industry.

The adult industry has always been a barometer for leading technology of mainstream media. Dating back to the early days of the printing press to the use of interactive devices that synchronize with the story line of video, the porn industry has often paved the way for the rest of us.

Current TV explores the adult entertainment industry, piracy that is threatening the business model, and how they are using technology to persevere.

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Pepsi’s Refresh Project, a first-of-its-kind experiment in social media that invests the brand in community-building projects, won’t simply leave a legacy for the recipients of its financial grants. It’s also a pivotal test case for other brands trying to navigate an ad-cluttered, cynic-rich marketing landscape.

Refresh Project will be closely watched by the industry for its scope and ambition to put digital media at its forefront, its purpose-driven strategy and the way it restructures relationships within Pepsi’s agency circle. What Pepsi is trying to accomplish is unprecedented; its philosophy rips up the traditional marketing rulebook.

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The trailer for the epic Electronic Arts’ game “Dante’s Inferno” contains plenty of scenes of a warrior fighting beasts in the netherworld. But it was the game’s widely used marketing tagline that had CBS seeing red.

The commercial will still air, only with the tagline “Hell Awaits” instead.

The verdict follows CBS’ controversial decisions to air a pro-life ad from conservative group Focus on the Family during the big game, and to reject an ad from a gay dating site that showed two men making out.

VALENCIA (AdAge.com) — The tenuous relationship between media agencies and media owners reared its head during the day’s last session at the 2009 Festival of Media as the heads of some of the largest media agencies gathered here discussed how everything from the recession to social media has affected their operations.

During the “Global CEO Spotlight” panel, the moderator, Advertising Age Editor Jonah Bloom, playing the role of a media owner, took the agencies to task for complicating buys due to their complex internal structure. “We came with a multiplatform [ad buy] and it was an integrated-marketing solution. And then the [agency's] TV guy didn’t want to know about parts of it, or he wasn’t talking to the digital guy and the digital guy doesn’t even know who lives in the TV department.” His monologue drew applause from the media owners in the audience.

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NEW YORK A new global survey on broadcast viewing from consultant Accenture shows that despite the recession, a growing number of consumers would rather pay for content to avoid ads.

The survey, which polled 14,000 consumers in 13 countries in January and February 2009, showed that 49 percent of respondents indicated a willingness to pay for digital programming, up from the 37 percent who said they’d be willing to pay in last year’s poll.

The survey found that subscription payment models — where consumers pay a fee (usually monthly) for unlimited programming — were preferred over pay-to-play models.

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“The Good Housekeeping seal of approval, nearing 100 years old, has had some work done over the years: seven face-lifts, starting when it was only two years old.”

Personally, I’m a big fan of that vintage look.

Read the rest of the story here.

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) — Tech company Macrovision has sold off the rest of TV Guide, including the cable channel and website, for about $300 million to TV producer Allen Shapiro and private equity firm One Equity Partners.

The sale ends Macrovision’s short stewardship of the storied company.

Macrovision came into possession of the magazine, cable channel and web site in January when it bought the assets of Gemstar-TV Guide for $2.8 billion.

15 million unique visitors a month
In October, Macrovision sold off TV Guide Magazine for $1 plus the assumption of debt, and even agreed to loan PE firm OpenGate Capital $9.5 million to finance the deal.

NEW YORK General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt told company investors Tuesday that NBC Universal would post a profit of $3 billion this year and that the division has a “fighting chance to be flat” in 2009.

But Immelt also cautioned that NBCU could be down “slightly” next year. He said the TV stations business was encountering a “particularly tough” phase.

Overall, however, his tone was upbeat. Because NBCU had diversified both geographically and into the cable-network business, it is better prepared to face the recession and help the company achieve its goal of 10 percent annual profit growth once recovery takes hold, Immelt said.

He also cited the network’s move to strip a new Jay Leno program in prime time as one example of how all GE divisions are implementing low-cost innovative ways to boost margins.[read more]

NEW YORK The so-called digital divide between emerging and developed economies worldwide might not be that wide after all. A new online survey conducted by Nielsen finds that while Western countries tend to be heavy users of such media hardware as DVD players and gaming consoles, next-generation devices like video-enabled handsets are more popular in up-and-coming markets, particularly in Asia. [read more]