Gay Owned/Operated AVS

was really disappointed today. Adult Check just redesigned their front page. It had a picture of a guy featured prominently in the middle of the page. The reaction by most straight webmasters on the boards was very hostile and I found alot of comments just plain offensive.

We need a Gay owned and operated AVS for our community. Not just to sell memberships, but to celebrate our sexuality and not just follow what some straight person thinks we should like.

I'm looking for gay webmasters who are interested in taking on this endeavor. I have a good grasp of html and graphics but I would like to find other webmasters who are experts in these areas.

Right now, everything is in the planning stages. If we offer a great service, then word will get around and gay webmasters and surfers will get the respect they deserve. Today was a real wake-up call for me.

I'm Charles. I'm the webmaster of Huskyhunks.com. My email is webmaster@huskyhunks.com.

Husky,

Please drop me an email lee@gamediacorp.com may have a proposition for you (in a business sense of the word LMAO)

Regards,

Lee

Charles/HuskyHunk...
Glad to see you made it over here! This is a great board and one of my new favorite hang-outs. GaryAlan and Lee are great hosts.

As for your idea... it's about time! I'm not sure what "gay" AVS's are truly gay owned or even if ANY of the employees are gay! UGAS has worked well for me recently, but the whole design is soooo twink oriented, I imagine my surfers have to fight the urge to hit the back button before joining!

We need an AVS that celebrates the diversity of gay culture! Not just an AVS that thinks all gay men are TWINKS!

AMEN!


-sorry for shouting... but, finally something to shout about!

Hi,

Thanks for the welcome. It does feel better on this board then the other ones. Gayport, RainbowAVS, and I believe BearPass are gay owned. Both Gayport and RainbowAVS are now defunct or close to it. Bearpass is doing well but the focus is limited to bears and cubs which is great because that's mostly what I like.

I do feel that inclusion is the most important element to the success of a gay owned avs. I've always felt like the gay market was a step-child of the straight market, almost like a straight fetish.

I don't think so. We are a community as close, varied, and vibrant as anything this world has ever seen. Why should we allow ourselves to be anything less. I just want something that reflects our passion, sexuality, lust, love, etc, in an honest way. No straight person or company can do that for us.

HH

I'd offer my help... but I'm just a newbie and I would just get in the way. But I will build quality sites for your new AVS!

Xtr8Guy,

A webmaster such as yourself is an incredible asset and crucial to the success of any AVS. When the time comes, I would be honored to have your sites listed. I wish all webmasters had your enthusiasm and willingness to try new things and also your work ethic.

Being a newbie probably has more advantages than disadvantages. This business is all about what's going on in 2003 and 2004 - not 1998 or 2000. We all have to stay current and informed so we're very much equal as far as that's concerned.

I'm still working on the overall concept and payout structure. In keeping with the community feel, I'm hoping that webmasters would agree to include bio's on a personalized entrance script. Nothing too private, just something to let potential members know that we're real people just like they are. I think it would be a great way to introduce a new website.

Ok, now it's time to look into processing. That should be fun. CUSoon and good luck with your current sites.







HH

Be sure to check into the pending Visa regulations .... word is (from all the webmaster boards) that Visa plans to make each AVS have each site under them register with Visa. This means each webmaster has to come up with $750 for the first year and $250 for each additional.

Mastercard charges $1,000 for their registration but that really hasn't been put in place yet, and nothing has been said about MC with AVS.

I'd move my sites to a gay owned AVS in a heartbeat. I've never used one because they were too twinky for me (one site is gay hairy men), too rainbowish (ok, too gay!) or they didn't really offer a lot of sites to the visitor.

I've got a couple of sites under one gay AVS with no signups in 2 months ..... not a good thing

Hi,

Visa is good at keeping everyone guessing. I know they have new regulation in place and everything is pointing to a much more regulated workplace for us now which may be better in the long run. There needs to be more accountability.

I don't want to make another "standard" gay avs. I agree that twinks are just way overused. We come in all shapes, sizes, ages, etc, and out tastes are extremely varied. I want the new avs to reflect that.

As far as being "too gay", I think I understand where you're coming from. I think of CyberAge as being "too straight" for both the straight and gay market. Most straight webmasters would probably riducule that statement but it all depends on where you're coming from.

One of the most difficult tasks is balancing sex with entertainment. Should an avs just "get you off" or should it entertain you in different ways ? Should it inform you such as this resource or offer chat like Gay.com or hookup places like CruisingforSex ? I know where I sit on these issues but I would really be interested in getting more feedback from other webmasters.

Regarding processing, I'm leaning towards the affiliate format used by paysites. In a worst case scenario with current regulations, Visa would only charge me the fees and not affiliates.











HH

I would be keen on joining this venture too. I can offer some great experience with billing companies plus content and hosting.

Charles, you have mail

Cheers!

Luke

I, too, echo the sentiments of the other posters in that most gay AVS pages are too in-your-face rainbow twinky. I find a lot of that really intimidating.

I am starting to think that setting up an AVS site featuring my cartoons would be a good idea. I could use the extra money. I think I'll spend some time this week reading up on how to do that. I really don't know anything about AVS's, affiliates or TGP's.

By the way, I run my own web server, so that part is taken care of already.

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WWW.COMICBOYS.COM

Galleries - Games - Animations
Hardcore Toon Content At Its Finest!

"No toons were harmed in the making of this website. They're just... um... really good actors."

Hi,

Luke, thanks for replying and the email. Great to meet you !Digital Mojo, that's really great work you do. I love your style. Still working on the concept here. When I have something more concrete I will post it here on this thread. Hopefully I'll have something to present if I can get to San Diego for the party.



HH

I would like to see something like this happen.

Most of the gay AVS do seem to be geared towards the twink market. I suppose that content sells to a lot of folks.

However there is a need for a quality avs that caters to and accentuates the range of our gay lifestyle experience. It's all good!

Mr. Licious

Mr. Licious,

That's so on the money. I think plastering twinks everywhere is just a convenient way to portray gays. Of course, we know that's not very accurate but you have to admit, the content is readily available and if you're a straight company, that's what you go with.

Content, content, content - it's 90% twink or "perfect" male model oriented. How do we change that ? Hopefully this is a step in the right direction. We're going to have to make sites that reflect the entire sprectrum of gay and bi men. That means at some point, we'll have to make our own content.

The new avs will most likely be set up to rebill monthly. I believe the 1 and 2 year avs model has had it's day. The "free" model is also in decline so that leaves us with a new avs/paysite hybrid. A new generation avs if you will. If rebills are solid, new content will emerge. The emphasis must now be on quality.

Nothing says boring or waste of time like "100,000 sites" or "700,000" sites, etc.. Surfers are on to that. They know exactly what that means now. It's time to give them something different. I think they are just waiting for something new to emerge.





HH

Um... If I may say one tiddy little thing.

I'd say a good 50% of my website's visitors are women. I get letters (and marriage proposals and offers of children) every day from them. But when asked, they tell me that they don't have AVS memberships and would not consider buying them. It makes me wonder why. These women import gay anime, video games, and "yaoi doujinshi" from Japan at exorbitant rates (often $50 and up for one book or DVD, with some collections appraised into the thousands) and spend hours online deciphering the Japanese.

That is some expensive porn, yo'. So why do they cringe from the AVS's?

I have no answers or solutions. It was just a thing that made me wonder.

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WWW.COMICBOYS.COM

Galleries - Games - Animations
Hardcore Toon Content At Its Finest!

"No toons were harmed in the making of this website. They're just... um... really good actors."

Wanna bet some of those "women" are actually men, who are too ashamed to admit they like gay anime/porn?

Just a thought... I was "straight" until about 5 years ago... so I have some insight into the mind of a closeted man... in fact I credit the internet into releasing me from my straight life bondage! HALELUAH!

Heh heh heh... I'm not so inclined to believe that myself. I'd buy that story if I hadn't met many of these women in person at various conventions.

'Course, the guys wub it too. I have an Inbox full of the most shocking confessions. I feel like the bartender who's always hearing people's most personal secrets. Talk about hot copy for a paysite! O.O

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WWW.COMICBOYS.COM

Galleries - Games - Animations
Hardcore Toon Content At Its Finest!

"No toons were harmed in the making of this website. They're just... um... really good actors."

I would be interested in making sites for an AVS like this. I think the other gay AVS programs do ignore promotion of many of the predominant areas of our gay lifestyle. Twinks do sell, but there is great interest in the other niches. It would be nice to have a more balanced environment to work in.

Mr. Licious

Hey Guys,

Yet another straight avs, ProAdult, has just inveiled their own gay avs, Imen.com. Seems ok but isn't it just like every other one.

In other news regarding my new gay avs project ....

Looks like Verotel is the processor that I will use for the new gay avs I'm working on. I'm very happy with their service. They offer Direct Deposit (yeah !) for webmasters and resellers so that is a definitely plus. Also, they pay every week, so on Monday, everyone who makes over $25 will recieve their direct deposit in the bank. It's free ! I love their interface and stats area. It's very intuitive and shouldn't give anyone much trouble at all.

Another plus is that they are based in the hyper-gay Netherlands. Gay marriage, free thinkers, out and open, I can't think of a better place to process from especially if we all get direct deposit. Receiving checks from overseas will not be an issue.

Webmaster payouts - here's the breakdown

cost to consumer - $29.95 mo. recurring


affiliate payout 50% - -$14.97 mo. recurring payout
processing fee (for me) - -$4.05 cost
reserve 10% (for me) - -$3.00 cost

net for me - $8.03 mo. recurring payout

This seems to be the price point that the new programs are using and I think it's a good one because it is 2003 and it simply cost us more if we're going to be producing our own content. 50% is the highest payout allowable with Verotel and I think it's a fair one.

Ok. nothing in stone... yet.







HH

Guys,

We just had to turn down an offer to buy an exisitng AVS site including all the scripting and design etc etc.

Go check out the announcements board i beleive the guy has posted it on there IMHO this would be a GREAT opportunitie for some of you guys to form a partnership and start your own AVS it also has a great domain name!

Regards,

Lee

Verotel?

I think you can find MUCH better processors in the USA. If they pay every week, where are my last 4 checks?

"Oh, we're sorry, they must have gotten lost".

I refuse to give some foreign company my banking information; I don't trust anyone with my bank numbers

I put Hughes Billing on one of our sites (in place of Verotel) and I'm very very happy with them.

As far as women visiting gay sites, I do get a fair share number of women emailing me, most tell me they like looking at big cocks or very handsome men.

I think many people think AVS' are a scam.

I had check problems with ProBilling. My checks took forever to get to me and that was just from Canada. I don't think I would ever want to wait to get paid by mail from overseas. I'm very happy with Verotel. They have earned my trust. I love Direct Deposit. That's why I left Globill because they said they were going to get it and then dropped it.

As far as giving your checking account and routing number, that's funny because we give that information every time we pay by check. We give it to the 16 year old at the checkout stand. Talk about trust. We have to trust that most people are honest. Otherwise, there's no point to any of this.

HH

Quote:I think many people think AVS' are a scam.





I wonder why that is. Could it be perhaps the quality or design of the particular AVS site they're currently visiting?


---------------------------------------
WWW.COMICBOYS.COM

Galleries - Games - Animations
Hardcore Toon Content At Its Finest!

"No toons were harmed in the making of this website. They're just... um... really good actors."

Girlfriends !!

Mancheck.com is one of the original and best "GAY AVS" sites in the industry. We are GAY owned and operated. Check us out..we know the difference. Keep it in the family..we understand your needs and the needs of the market. This summer, we will also be adding pay per view to furthur the money that can be made as webmaster. Come see the difference in quality...its amazing what a little fairy dust will do.

robert@mancheck.com

Yeah, my 3 month involvement with ProBilling was disastrous. They are on constant shaky grounds it seems with the banks. (They lost their account last fall and stopped processing Visa for a couple of days..then started scrubbing like you've never seen!). My advice is to stay away from them!

Just dropping an update on the new avs - It's called

PRIDE KEY

at pridekey.com. Of course, it's still very early on and I'm still working on the main page. This is just about the best I can do with design. I'm not a great designer but it's clean and that's important.

It took forever to find a name that encompasses and reflects everything that I had in mind. Most of the good names were already taken so that made the search much harder. It's very simple , easy to remember, and to the point. After working on it, it's starting to catch on with me.

Ok, I'm always open to advice and hopefully some of you will follow me in this process and submit sites when the time comes. Thanks guys.

HH

Hey Rick....I just spotted your post. I see you have the Scott O'Hara tribute site--r u the owner?

muchoantonio

They have a shady business tactic w/ thier affiliate program

1. if the webmaster of a site want to use them as an affilitate program & no use the pro billing links thats fine w/ them in other words the owner of the site gets free traffic & sales & the affiliate gets screwed

2. an affiliate makes a sale & the owner of the site has to approve that sale meaning that you can make the sale but if the owner of the site dosent want to pay you your screwed too....

just hope your dealing w/ an honest webmaster.