The Japanese Adult Video Industry

Unlike many other books on pornography which concentrate on arguments about restricting or not restricting pornography, this book focuses on the production of adult videos. It outlines and examines the industrial dynamics of the industry, its strategies, technological capabilities and organisational structure. It discusses the socialisation of those who participate in the industry, the role of censorship, the nature of markets and the wider cultural impact of the industry. "This is a serious, accessible and extremely important book that provides, for the first time in English, an introduction to Japan's adult video industry. Offering an in-depth historical overview of the postwar development of adult pornography, alongside a close ethnographic reading of its sites of production and consumption, the authors help to normalize this significant industry. They provide insight into how pornography has come to take on its distinctive contours in contemporary Japan, and how and why Japanese pornography stars, formats and genres have spread beyond Japan to influence the sexual cultures of neighboring societies in East Asia." - Mark McLelland, University of Wollongong, Australia "This path-breaking volume opens up the world of Japan's videos industry to social scientific analysis. The authors very skillfully use observation, interviews and statistical data to depict the industry, sketch-out its social and cultural context and offer multifaceted insights about its internal characteristics and dynamics. It will become an anchor point for any future research." - Eyal Ben-Ari, Director, Kinneret Academic College, Israel