So, as we all know, Playboy ain’t quite what it used to be. New CEO Scott Flanders replaced Hugh Hefner’s daughter, Christie, and an interim CEO that wanted to sell the company, a couple of months ago.
Apparently Flanders, too, has decided that Playboy is in dire straits -- that its magazine, TV, and digital media businesses are not as busty as they used to be. Of course, this is the sad story for just about every publishing company out there – they just ain’t as appealing as they used to be – what with the Internet these days.
Thankfully, Playboy has a few options. However, unfortunately for us, Flanders doesn’t think hard-core sex videos or PlayboyTV will be the answer. Instead, he believes it will be up to Playboy clubs to provide sustainable revenue streams. He's busy forging partnerships to launch a series of international night clubs, but, uh, I think they've tried something like this before, and I seem to remember it failing. Maybe these will be the upscale Hooters I've been waiting for?
Admittedly, I am also posting this because Marge Simpson is on the cover of Playboy this month. And I think we’re all wondering the same thing, and, yes, it involves the color blue and may or may not involve nipples. In fact, some organizations are complaining that Playboy is taking advantage of “tweens” and trying to recruit children by putting Marge on the cover. Which is hilarious. The Simpsons have been on TV for 20 years, come on. I can’t believe that the only Simpsons fans are 12-year-olds. Though you have to admit, it does say something when a cartoon celebrity makes the cover of Playboy. They couldn't find any girls gone wild?
So, what would you do to save this American institution, besides offing Hugh Hefner or putting Lois from Family Guy on the cover?
I have to say, in my opinion, that the outlook for Playboy is very dim. Their service offerings are wrapped in an ancient business model that, unfortunately for them, was invited long before the internet ever was.
They offer nothing unique to consumers other than the nostalgia that some of the long time subscribers have when they see their closet full of past issues.
One option is to continue to offer what they are known for and transition it to the internet. Then their best bet is to offer everything for free and rely on pay-per-click ads, but who knows if this would generate a significant amount of revenue. They could offer videos (soft/hardcore, whatever) but again, this is something that is easily found free, or at low costs, on the internet.
They could offer some upscale style "Hooters" which they could market as restaurants, if they keep it clean enough, or they could push into the gentleman's club arena, which is occupied by Penthouse (among others). Akin to the aforementioned, they could open a few upscale, high-class nightclubs in a few key markets like LA, Miami, and NY, but again...all things in markets that are (over)saturated.
Part of me things it is too far gone to even be saved, but who knows, there are many folks out there far more creative then myself.
Regards
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