Babenet Files $1M Suit Against AVN

CHATSWORTH, Calif. — Babenet has filed suit against co-founder and chairman Paul Fishbein and AVN at Los Angeles Superior Court, claiming fraud and breach of contract, among other charges.

Babenet, which at one time was a collection of membership sites and TGPs, said it’s owed an amount exceeding $1 million.

In 1999, Babenet made a $300,000, five-year loan to Fishbein’s AVN to help jumpstart the Internext trade show, then known as IA 2000.

As part of the agreement, Babenet was to receive eight percent of the gross revenue collected from Internext.

Babenet also was to receive no less than the “favored nations pricing” for exhibitor space at the show and two full pages of advertising in the Internext showguide.

According to court documents, the suit agains Fishbein and AVN got its legs during an April 2008 lunch.

At the lunch, it became clear to three Babenet execs— Jack Gallagher, Rob Gould and Andy Garroni — that their deal had gone south.

Babenet contends that the funds they received from AVN were “substantially less” than eight percent of the gross receipts and that AVN “secretly” provided free exhibition space to other companies at the same time it was charging Babenet up to $25,000 per show for space.

Babenet also said AVN and Fishbein had “induced exhibitors and attendees of the shows to migrate to other adult trade shows wholly owned by AVN in order to avoid paying Babenet its eight percent.”

The suit further contends that AVN and Fishbein never accounted to Babenet the gross revenue associated with the show, including commissions, affiliate marketing, trade or barter and revenue from a spin-off show.

Babenet’s claim seeks accounting of Internext’s finances for an undetermined number of years. It also seeks to have all of Internext’s funds held by a trust until the court can adjudicate the case.

The contractual fraud case has a status hearing March 2 at the downtown courthouse.

Fishbein referred questions to his attorney, Paul Cambria, who was unavailable for comment late Friday. XBIZ was unable to reach Babenet attorney Allen Grodsky for comment by post time.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

GirlsDoPorn Owner Michael Pratt Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking

Michael Pratt, former owner of the rogue website GirlsDoPorn, pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California on Thursday to sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit sex trafficking charges, according to a report by City News Service.

Master Nico Relaunches Site Through YourPaysitePartner

Master Nico has relaunched his official website through YourPaysitePartner (YPP).

Federal Judge Grants Partial Halt of Florida AV Law

The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Tallahassee Division, has granted a preliminary injunction against HB 3, the state's age verification law, as a lawsuit filed by two online trade associations challenging the law makes its way through the courts.

Aylo Releases Statement on Suspending Access to Pornhub in France

Technology and media company Aylo, which operates adult sites including Pornhub, YouPorn, and Redtube, has released a public statement regarding its decision to block access to its sites in France.

Pineapple Support to Host Wellness Sessions at Bucharest Summit

Pineapple Support is hosting free group and one-on-one therapy sessions at Bucharest Summit, June 3-5.

Pornhub Blocks Access in France in Response to SREN Law

Pornhub parent company Aylo has opted to block access to its sites in France rather than comply with age verification requirements under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law.

ASACP Highlights Study on Parental Controls

The Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection (ASACP) is highlighting the results of a study on the underutilization of parental controls.

Sydney Screams Launches New Site Through Grooby's Blue.xxx

Sydney Screams has launched her new membership site, SydneyScreams.xxx, through Grooby's website management company Blue.xxx.

Mistress Mystii Is LoyalFans' 'Featured Creator' for June

LoyalFans has named Mistress Mystii as its Featured Creator for June.

Canadian Senator Revives Push for National AV Law

Sen. Julie Miville-Dechêne, whose previous multiple attempts to legislate national age verification requirements all failed, has introduced a new bill that would impose fines of up to $500,000 on adult sites that do not implement age verification for Canadian viewers.

Show More