Day By Day

Monday, April 03, 2006

Sign O' the Times -- Playboy Goes Gay


AFP reports:

London - Playboy, the US-based adult publisher and broadcaster, is considering using Britain as a testing ground for moving into the gay market for the first time, The Times newspaper said on Monday.

Playboy wants to launch a new gay brand to boost revenues, the daily said.

Chief-executive Christine Hefner told The Times: "We've extended the Playboy brand to women, and where there is a meaningful gay market, launching under a different brand is something we are very comfortable doing.

"In the UK, our television people are very interested, and I wouldn't be surprised if we launched something this year, given the importance of the market in Britain."

The Playboy group is planning to tap into the gay market as part of a strategy to diversify its interests away from the company's magazine, which is only just profitable despite a three-million-strong circulation.

It has already launched a range of clothing and accessories, mostly for women, and is planning to supply adult video clips to mobile phones.

According to The Business weekly newspaper, Playboy could also launch a chain of shops across Europe this year. The group already has boutiques in Tokyo, Melbourne and Las Vegas in Nevada.

Read the whole thing here.


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