As promised we're starting our overview of the Cybersocket Web Awards nominations that were recently announced with a look at the Best Original Content category. As a reminder you have until December 31 to vote for your favorites (including Jack Manly we hope) but we wanted to start relatively early to cover as many nominees as possible. And the end of the series we'll provide a link where you can see all our blog entries on the nominations.

 The Best Original Content category requires little explanation--the nominees are sites that shoot videos exclusively for themselves. Just about all the sites should be familiar to you although some may be completely new and WILL require explanation. 

  As expected the big guns are represented. These are among what we refer to as the first wave, the popular sites that everyone has heard about and seem to be automatic nominees. That said, just about all these sites aren't exactly sitting on their laurels. They maintain their successes by being pro-active in all kinds of ways. These sites include Randy Blue, Sean Cody, Corbin Fisher, Chaos Men & Jake Cruise.

  Randy Blue kicked it up a notch awhile ago with three updates & a live show per week but this year went all out with the feature-length That 70s Gay Porn Movie . In addition the site will soon be putting it out on DVD along with other discs featuring compilations of past videos. The site joins Corbin Fisher which has also gone into DVD production as well as offering branded merchandise in its online store. Corbin Fisher also teamed with fellow nominee Bel Ami Online to co-produce videos featuring stars from both sites in action together. Bel Ami Online in turn did the same thing with Cocky Boys.

  Sean Cody was among the very first sites to debut and it would have to be considered the gold standard for the entire online video site genre. The faces (and bodies) may change but the site prides itself on finding new ones while maintaining its consistency of quality. It's interesting but it seems that we've seen the influence of Sean Cody more in 2009 that in previous years. We've found that many of the rising stars on other sites and in movies this year started out at this site. Chaos Men started out being heavily influenced by SC but has evolved steadily to forge its own identity. It too has provided rising stars to the rest of the adult genre as well as showcasing new and familiar faces.  

  Jake Cruise actually could be considered as a microcosm of this "first wave". It has newcomers & rising stars from across the spectrum of the gay porn biz; Jake Cruise has been releasing a series of DVDs for years; and videos range in style and content. This past year Jake Cruise Enterprises did something else entirely--it purchased its own studio, complete with a "backlot". While this is still in the evolution stage we've already seen videos that expand beyond the old "bedroom set" seen here and in many other sites. 

  The rest of the nominated sites represent the wide variety of sites available but the fact that they don't cover all the bases should tell you how much is really out there for consumers. Of these nominees Cocky Boys, Next Door Buddies, and College Dudes 24/7 probably come closest to resembling the first wave of sites but each of them has been influential in their own rights. They do share the common bond of featuring a variety of guys, whether they were new or experienced and putting them together in videos. As we mentioned Cocky Boys also has collaborated with Bel Ami in an inter-company crossover with both sites' stars and in the process has solidified its place of prominence. Next Door Buddies & College Dudes 24/7 have both provided a showcase for hot & upcoming stars and studios have taken notice by casting these guys and essentially making them stars. 

  There are also sites that have a specialized premise which has a built-in challenge ---keeping the site fresh and innovative while staying true to its original concept. Popular Brit site Men At Play features super sexy men in suits in hot fantasy scenes & well-produced videos and always keeps it interesting by using an amazing assortment of international performers. This year the site took it up several notches with an online contest to find its newest exclusive (hot American model Levi Poulter came out on top) and a total site re-design with improvements in every department. Active Duty loves military guys and has featured them prominently since the beginning. The site has evolved significantly featuring multi-part videos with themes and stories and compiling them on DVD. The site has seriously tried to keep it real with genuine amateurs but has generated a few stars along the way and featured some familiar faces as guest stars. You Love Jack gives amateur guys a video camera to film their own scenes without a director telling them what to do. The result is videos where the guys feel much more uninhibited--even if they're filming a scene with another guy or they've done it before for other sites. 

  We could put On The Hunt in this specialized premise category too although it's a bit looser than the above examples. Essentially it features videos starring real Manhunt members hooking up with each other and having their sex dates filmed by real porn stars. This premise really hasn't changed although the site doesn't feature as many amateurs as you might expect. No matter because the sex still seem real & hot and we like it when the directors get involved. This past year the site was redesigned done interesting things like going on location to South America as well as filming in a townhouse in NYC.

  The nominee that perhaps has the most specialized premise and the one that needs the most explanation is Brit site Homo Emo. An "emo" guy is hard to describe although according to the site the guys are so named because they resemble the look "emotional rock music" ---a cross between indie & punk rock. Think of semi-androgynous guys with semi-spiky Christian Siriano hair and ultra white skin and you'll get the idea of an emo guy. While we're on the subject of Brits popular sites Blake Mason & English Lads are both nominated and while they might seem to be interchangeable the fans of both sites will tell you differently. The way we see it Blake Mason make skew towards a younger group of performers while in spite of its name English Lads seems to feature older jock types. Both sites do share in common an assortment of hot, fresh-faced guys who love to get down & dirty. Among the other nominees Dirty Boy Video seems to be the closest to being the US version of the Brit sites---nasty boys!

 Finally there are online video sites started by porn studios. Channel 1 Releasing has its Live & Raw weekly, non-scripted live shows featuring the studs from Chi Chi LaRue's studio and a line-up of very hot guys from elsewhere--major stars, newcomers, rising stars, etc. It's all fresh & spontaneous and the guys like to keep it even more lively by trying to make each show different. Hot House has had Hot House Backroom featuring weekly videos shot with the same professional style as the studio's full-length movies. This fall the site added another feature---live unscripted shows. In both cases you'll find HH exclusives and sexy guest-stars from the gay porn biz.