By AVN

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif.—While there were plenty of new products that featured all the technological bells and whistles, quite a few attendees were just as impressed with some of the simpler items showcased during the AVN Novelty Expo 2009.

The three-day expo, considered the premier B2B event for the adult pleasure item industry, closed Wednesday, leaving behind many satisfied buyers and exhibitors.

Despite initial concerns about the scheduling of ANE and the ANME Founders Show so close together, in most cases exhibitors were happy with the attendance and business at ANE.

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“It would have been a lot better if the conventions were not split in two,” said Joshua Maurice, president of sales for RockHard Laboratories. “I felt bad for most of the buyers; they were exhausted and split between the two shows. I feel like this political battle didn’t honor the larger purpose of having a place for interested buyers to find the best products for their needs.”

Though many exhibitors shared Maurice’s sympathy for buyers, the majority of exhibitors said they were happy that many international buyers were seen at ANE for the first time. And those buyers, they said, were interested in what they saw.

B3, a division of Big Teaze Toys, introduced the Onye Fleur line, which features some modifications to the original Onye line in an effort to drop the price point to $30-$35 instead of $55.

Scheduled for release this fall, the Fleur items are the same shape and size as the original Onye, and still feature a three-speed motor, but the five pulsation features have been dropped to help reduce the price. The band around the middle has been textured to feature a floral pattern, and the Fleur line will be available in pink, red and purple.

And not all of the popular items at ANE were powered. LELO officials showed off the prototypes of several new light-play BDSM products scheduled for release in the coming months, including classy whips with glass handles and pastel-colored leather strands, glass-handled feather dusters, and satin bags that hold a satin blindfold and restraint straps.

“They are very easy, because you just put your wrist through the loop and then cinch it,” LELO’s Shaye Saldana said.

Also coming soon from LELO is the LOLA, a new rabbit-esque vibrator that will be available in vibrant orange, grape and lime.

Liberator Bedroom Adventure Gear, which has made a name in the industry for creating shapes and playwear for couples, introduced a smaller version of its popular wedge that is packaged for distribution through home party companies.

Besides getting the chance to show off new offerings, many company officials said they were excited to have the chance at ANE 2009 to meet personally with others.

“It’s been great to get face-to-face time to talk with people we’ve been communicating with,” said Gary Elliott, director and owner of Rocks-Off. “There is nothing like face-to-face time.”

Rocks-Off launched four items at ANE 2009, including the new Arrow 120mm bullet, which was well received.

First-time exhibitor Jonathan Parks, creative director for DFNovelty.com—the company behind Pornaments, adult-themed holiday ornaments—said they were surprised by the positive response they got at all levels.

“This is our first year with this product line, and everyone who came by, as an exhibitor or as a buyer, was very helpful, he said. “We didn’t expect other exhibitors to be so helpful.”

Those unable to attend ANE 2009 can start their planning now for the B2B section of the Adult Entertainment Expo, scheduled for Jan. 7-10, 2010, at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas. For more information, visit AdultEntertainmentExpo.com.

By AVN

STOCKHOLM—A Swedish internet service provider plans to appeal a court order to hand over user IP addresses as per the country's anti-piracy IPRED law.

According to The Local, ISP Ephone said it will appeal the court ruling that it pass on customer information to five publishers investigating copyright violations.

Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reports that the Solna District Court said Ephone will face 750,000 kronor ($95,000) in fines if it fails to comply with the order.

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Ephone said it made the decision to appeal based on massive customer support from its customers and the general public, while the court is taking a drubbing in the Swedish court of public opinion for invading privacy.

Ephone has continued to argue that the court does not have sufficient evidence to obtain a guilty verdict—plus, other principles were at work.

"That's why we think it's important that the case is tried at a higher court," CEO Bo Wigstrand told Svenska Dagbladet.

Ephone is the first internet provider to be taken to court under the controversial IPRED law. The measure, based on the EU’s Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Directive, went into effect April 1. Under its terms, ISPs may be forced by a court order to release information about users suspected of copyright infringement.

In June, the Solna District Court found that there was probable cause that Ephone users were violating copyrights and ruled the company should pay five audio book publishers’ court costs of 75,000 kronor ($9,500).

The publishers are the first to call on IPRED; 15 authors claim their work has been passed on illegally on the internet through file sharing and have demanded to know the name of the owner of a server allegedly containing some 2,000 audio book titles.

Ephone countered a password was required to access the material said to be on the computer and argued the sound files weren’t publicly accessible so it wasn’t a case of copyright infringement.

As noted by TechDirt, since the implementation of IPRED, some Swedish ISPs have been deleting log files, claiming it was another step to protect customer privacy—though it was also seen as a way to foil IPRED.