Marriott to remove porn from in-room VoD service...

BETHESDA, Md.—The mainstream media is so lazy. They grab at the easiest story line and repeat it ad nauseam, especially when it has to do with porn. A perfect example of this is the Marriott story getting a lot of play in the current news cycle, which is about to end. By next week, the Marriott narrative—the hotel chain, realizing that traditionally delivered in-room adult entertainment revenue is in permanent decline, has decided to stop providing it—will be a dead story. Thereafter, the narrative will have survived as fact, along with the sub-plot that Marriott caved to both socially conservative and market forces.I read the Marriott announcement very differently, however. Behind the presumed capitulation to changing consumer behavior—whereby people would rather call up a veritable glut of uncensored porn on their laptops and iPods rather than pay inflated prices for porn on the VoD menu—I see a far shrewder play by Marriott officials who mean to stake a claim to the future, secure in the knowledge that they still have complete control over the biggest entertainment asset in their hotel rooms: the big HD screen.

This is why neither Marriott nor any major chain will seriously consider restricting internet access in the rooms; it would be a kiss of death with customers. Instead, they will guarantee that in-room access to the internet is not only easy but also fast and cheap. (Current charges tend to still be in the $15-$20 range for 24-hour access, which may be too high going forward.)  I think they should consider free access, but even if they insist on charging for wired or wireless internet, they would be truly foolhardy to give away the big screen for free.

Watch the little screens to your heart’s content—that should be Marriott’s refrain. But if you want to watch that internet-accessed hardcore porn on our awesome HD big screen, it will cost. Even better, we’ll integrate cutting-edge IPTV alternatives for you at great price points in order to maximize your in-room entertainment experience. Your choices have in fact expanded vastly.

That message was the one that I think Marriott delivered last week, and which, despite repeated requests from media outfits like MSNBC, it feels no need to embellish. I don’t blame them; no more need be said. They are reaping massive publicity and even kudos from anti-porn groups for having done essentially nothing but promise (albeit subtly) to upgrade their systems so that people will have more, not less, access to harder-edged porn in their hotel rooms. you can read the whole story here 

http://business.avn.com/articles/technology/Screen-Grab-Marriot-s-Big-Ad...

Does it honestly matter though? The prices of the in-room VoD is out of sight do you actually ever pay the price for them or just bring a laptop and either surf the porn sites or birng a DVD with you?