Thanks largely to the anything-goes nature of the online world, audiences in mature consumer societies are not easily shocked. As a result, brands are harnessing ever higher levels of risqué to stand out from the crowd. The Icecreamists recently grabbed our attention by sexing up dessert with their x-rated gelato dubbed The Sex Pistol—touted to have the same charge as a dose of Viagra. For those of you who need added proof that maturalism is rife, look no further than Hot Wax, an adults-only colouring book created by Atlanta-based pin-up artist Tyson McAdoo.

Pushing the boundaries in a traditionally child-centric domain, Hot Wax is a 32-page colouring and activity book (USD 14) filled with raunchy graphic illustrations. The images may be just outlines but the themes are unambiguous. With nudity, tattoos and lingerie featuring prominently, clearly this is not a colouring book for kids.

If you’ve read our sister-site's latest trend briefing, you will know that 2010 is set to be rawer and more risqué than ever. What will be the next plain-vanilla product to be infused with a saucy new twist? Could a side of daringly super-charged seduction be the order of the day for your brand?

Website: www.tysonmcadoo.com/store_book/storeBook_02.html — www.facebook.com/pages/Tyson-Mcadoo/54928786199
Contact: store@tysonmcadoo.com

Spotted by: Cecilia Biemann

Buskers have played on city streets for hundreds of years, working on the premise that people are willing to pay for a decent performance. Operating on a similar model, Anjuno could be seen as returning music to its pay-what-you-want roots. Launched in May, Anjuno allows creators of music, games and ebooks to post their work on the site, which fans can download and enjoy, then pay the artist whatever they think it's worth. The system accepts payments at any level—including free. Anjuno takes a commission of 15% per sale.

Anjuno aims to make the economics of digital media better for both the producer and the consumer. Summing up the advantages for both the artists and their fans, Anjuno urges: “Instead of pirating that new album because you don't feel like paying $15, pay $2 here on Anjuno. And since we don't take huge cuts of the profit like record labels and publishers, the artist ends up making more from your small payment on Anjuno.”

Up until now, similar (un)pricing schemes have predominantly been used as a promotional tool. Does this this mark the beginning of a shift towards pay-what-you-want pricing models becoming more widely adopted as the basis of a business? Will we see more new businesses fundamentally eschew traditional pricing models in favour of letting their customers decide the prices? One to watch. (Related: pay-as-you-want magazines, restaurants, hotels and ad agencies.)

Website: www.anjuno.com
Contact: office@anjuno.com

Spotted by: Cecilia Biemann

Netherlands-based Sellaband has already appeared on our virtual pages on numerous occasions, so we were interested to see a like-minded enterprise spring up in France. Much like Sellaband, Kisskissbankbank lets music fans invest in the bands they love and share in the rewards of their success.

Fans begin by browsing through the artists on the site and choosing one or more they'd like to invest in. As little as EUR 10 per band makes a fan an official “KissBanker,” and those funds can be withdrawn or transferred to another artist at any time. Meanwhile, such investments entitle KissBankers to a share in the success of that band's efforts in proportion to their investments, as well as access to bonuses and exclusive content. KissBankers may also get invited to weigh in on decisions their bands make, and they are encouraged to help promote them in their own social networks and communities. Kisskissbankbank, meanwhile, gets a 20 percent commission on the amounts that are invested.

With all the many ways we've seen for bands to collaborate with their fans—whether via financial investments, help with music sales or concert promotion—it's clear the crowdfunding model has struck a “chord,” so to speak, in the world of music. Bands get support, fans get involved—and paid. It's music to everyone's ears! ;-)

Website: www.kisskissbankbank.com
Contact: www.kisskissbankbank.com/contact_requests/new

Spotted by: Raymond Kollau

Filmaps is rapidly creating a crowd-powered database of filming locations around the world. Users can search by location or film title to bring up a Google Map that features location photos from Panoramio and videos from YouTube. Since its launch in January this year 998 films have been mapped in 2363 locations. Filmaps adds social elements through Facebook and Twitter connections, as well as embeddable location widgets.

We've seen maps used for everything from virtual jogging to erotic spending statistics. As described by our sister-site trendwatching.com, "geography is about everything that is (literally) close to consumers, and it's a universally familiar method of organizing, finding and tracking relevant information on objects, events and people."

There are hints on the website that Barcelona-based Filmaps may have plans to offer film location tours, which would make sense. Its members are already mapping out the routes, and the site would be a perfect marketing tool. What other niches could you map your way into?

Website: www.filmaps.com
Contact: www.filmaps.com/contact.php

Spotted by: Leticia Pérez Prieto

Seat Geek is a free service that helps users find tickets when they're cheapest. Currently focused on Major League Baseball games and select concerts in the US, Seat Geek employs a sophisticated algorithm to predict whether the price of a queried ticket is set to rise or fall—similar to what Bing Travel (formerly Farecast) does for flight tickets. If the price is expected to go down, users can sign up to receive a free email alert when it's at rock bottom. Seat Geek also scours the web in for the best deals at any moment, linking to affiliated ticket merchants like StubHub, RazorGator and eBay.

Seat Geek's patent-pending algorithm draws on a large pool of data that includes millions of historical ticket transactions. This data is crunched together with other factors, such as, for baseball games: team statistics, the weather, the venue, the price-level of the seat—even who'll be pitching. According to SeatGeek co-founder Jack Groetzinger, the algorithm is accurate 80% of the time, and it's also self-training, meaning it gets better every day.

As our sister-site explains in its latest briefing, consumers increasingly expect instant gratification. Seat Geek and other 'prediction engines' take that one step further, by drawing on the web's informational riches to tell consumers how things will be, enabling them to make better decisions now. The future has never been as near, and opportunities abound for entrepreneurs that can bring it even closer. (Related: Zigabid ticketing marketplace — Real-time pricing error alerts for consumers to pounce on.)

Website: www.seatgeek.com
Contact: admin@seatgeek.com

Spotted by: Cecilia Biemann