Zivity, a new adult social network start-up, has raised a $1 million round of seed capital from Silicon Valley investors — as it prepares for launch.
It’s not a porn site, such as the newer sites Eroshare (pictures) or Pornotube (vidoes). Rather, it likens itself to a mixture of MySpace and Playboy magazine with popularity/voting features thrown in. It says it focuses on pinup-like photography, or so-called “fine art erotica.” It invites regular woman — such as the local Starbucks barista — to submit photo shots.
Zivity is based on voting system. Paying subscribers vote on the images of women they like, and Zivity passes on a portion of the subscription revenue to the most popular women. There will be some free content to lure users, however you’ll have to subscribe to do things like leave messages for models. There will be blogs, and other social networking features, but video will be rolled out much later, if at all, according to the company.
A representative said a comparable site is Suicide Girls (brace yourself if you click on the link), only with fewer tattoos, less tongue-rings. Models will also not be as locked into the extensive contracts governing the Suicide Girls.
Several former PayPal executives are among the investors. Zivity is run by former execs and employees at Ironport Systems, a company bought by Cisco for $830 million earlier this year. When you’ve made it, what else is there left to do in life than launch an adult site? Jeffrey Wescott, an former Ironport engineer, is chief executive; Cyan Banister, who led Ironport’s customer support, is co-founder. Her husband Scott Banister, co-founder at Ironport is an advisor and investor in the company.
It is apparently based on ruby+rails, python, and/or perl, according to its job list.
Tags: co:Ironport-systems, co:Zivity, deal, PayPal, people:Cyan-Banister, people:Jeffrey-Wescott, people:Scott-Banister7 Comments
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Jimmy Huen said:
Would I pay for the privilege of voting for these pin-ups? I wouldn’t. But I know there is a segment of population that will. The key is to nail down the pricing point where it is at the equilibrium. I love the monetized business model right out of the gate. Good job.
Here’s my post.
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Stephen Larson said:
Don’t you have better things to cover than deals like this?
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Tom Johansmeyer said:
I think these guys have a shot. The problem with the adult business right now is that they haven’t figured out interesting or unique ways to get people to spend money online. If Adult Friend Finder is any indication, the future of adult entertainment online is going to be pay for services (particularly networking) rather than content. Zivity seems like the intersection of the two.
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NaughtyVillage said:
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NaughtyVillage.com allows members to post profiles, search other members, upload naughty photo galleries and videos, post blogs, rate naughty photos and videos, read about local naughty events, and more.
NaughtyVillage.com offers guaranteed and 100% anonymity. Apart from an email address, no personal data are requested. Detailed profile pages with multiple photos allow members to quickly find other members with matching preferences and interests. Sharing naughty videos for private or public access is provided to meet like minded individuals. Through our internal mail system, members can flirt with each other directly and get to know each other. If you like someone, you can place him or her on your friends list - a list of close acquaintances. The option of customizing profile pages with different HTML codes and colors is also provided plus more.
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NaughtyVillage.com is 100% FREE to use. Save your money, meet other naughty people and enjoy our site.
NaughtyVillage – Meet others like you!
http://www.NaughtyVillage.com -
Natalia Sokolova said:
Hi…I found your site via Yahoo! when i was searching for cover girl models, and this post regarding Zivity, an adult social network, raises $1M before launch really sounds very interesting to me.. Thanks.
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Steven said:
A social network is based on a place where people can meet and spend time interacting online, and while the idea of a gated version that allows for adult content (because by default everyone has verified there age by paying to be there) would bring a lot of people to it (including those that wish to network and promote there other online ventures), the idea of paying to work, and not really being invested in there time there, will keep people away. Your “model” is already out of focus.
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Xesenta.com said:
While Zivity is basically software online _ XESENTA takes on the simple, lo-tech DRUDGE REPORT model! We LINK-TO only the SEXIEST sites and stories on the globe and bookmark them for you. As a BONUS - we r building a girl-page 4 you with rising erotic models, porn stars and new discoveries.
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