MONTREAL – Even in the “cleanest” of industries, business ethics and best practices can represent a swamp. How does an entrepreneur generate profit without selling his soul? Is it possible to generate goodwill with peers and consumers without abandoning the rebellious mystique on which adult entertainment thrives? Considering the adult industry is never going to be seen as respectable anyway, why do ethics matter? What the devil does the term even mean in this industry?
Wasteland.com founder and Chief Executive Officer Colin Rowntree will wade into these issues and more when he moderates the “Ethics & Good Practices in the Adult Industry” seminar from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. Saturday during Qwebec Expo. The annual trade show and technical conference is set to take place Aug. 9-11 at the Marriott Chateau Champlain in downtown Montreal.
The seminar hardly represents Rowntree’s first foray into the swamp. One of only a handful of adult internet pioneers still active in the industry, Rowntree has been an outspoken advocate for business and sexual ethics and best practices since 1994.
In addition to Wasteland.com, the oldest BDSM playground on the Web, his company also operates other entities across the adult industry spectrum, including content production and distribution, affiliate programs, mobile content delivery and transaction processing. Over the nearly 20 years of his active involvement as an adult industry professional, Rowntree has been recognized by multiple industry awards, including the Free Speech Coalition’s 2011 Leadership Award. He is a frequent contributor to trade publications and blogs and has been interviewed by mainstream news outlets including BBC Television, FOX, HBO, ABC’s Nightline, NewsCorp, Time and Wired magazines, Cnet.com and Bnet.com.
“Wasteland.com embraces a wide breadth of business sectors in the adult industry,” he said. “I am excited to have an exceptional platform at Qwebec Expo to discuss ethical and related issues that affect all divisions in this business.”
Qwebec Expo serves existing and prospective online adult entertainment professionals. The business-to-business event acts as an international crossroads for U.S., Canadian and European members of the industry and provides attendees with information and resources they need to build, maintain, promote, market and grow an internet-based business in the estimated $15-billion-per-year online adult market. More information about the expo may be found on Qwebec.com.
