WantedList
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Adult entertainment, DVD rental |
| Founded | 1999 |
| Founder | Anh Tran, Danny Ting |
| Headquarters | Van Nuys, California , United States |
Area served | United States |
| Products | Adult DVD rentals (subscription-based) |
WantedList was a subscription-based adult DVD-by-mail service launched in 1999, providing customers across the United States with flat-rate rental options delivered via mail. Its main office was located in Van Nuys, California, with an additional fulfillment center situated in New Jersey.
Serving an estimated 25,000 subscribers, the company offered a collection of approximately 20,000 adult DVD titles. Anh Tran and Danny Ting, both former consultants at Arthur Andersen, founded WantedList, while software architect Matthew Lopes was responsible for developing its proprietary technology.
From 2003 through 2006, WantedList attracted media coverage due to innovations such as the "Pornotron" recommendation engine. This technology encountered legal disputes initiated by Hasbro concerning its use of imagery reminiscent of the Transformer Decepticon brand.
Acquisitions
During the fourth quarter of 2004, WantedList broadened its market presence by acquiring rival companies FlickSmart and RentFlixxx. Subsequently, it purchased Video Takeout and Flick Central from VTO Enterprises Inc., established by Dennis Consorte. These strategic acquisitions enabled the creation of an East Coast distribution center in New Jersey to complement the existing West Coast facility in California.
Competition
Within the subscription-driven adult video rental sector, WantedList competed alongside platforms such as DVD Empire, XRentDVD, Intimatedvd, AdultDVDCentral.com, Rentdvdxxx.com, URentDVDs, and SugarDVD. All these services operated under a business model comparable to that popularized by Netflix.
Awards
WantedList received the AVN Award for Best Retail Website consecutively in 2005, 2006 (shared with Adult DVD Empire), and 2007. Additionally, it earned the Xbiz accolade for Web Retailer of the Year in 2007. In 2010, it was honored with the Best Adult DVD Rental award recognizing excellence in online adult DVD rental services.
Notes
External links
- Skin City Wired Magazine November 2005
- Sex and Two Single Guys AsianWeek October 2003
- WantedList.com Buying FlickSmart and Rentflixxx AVN November 2004
- WantedList.com Acquires Video Takeout and Flick Central AVN December 2004
- AVN Awards
- XBiz Awards