Daily Planet (brothel)
Encyclopedia
Daily Planet is a licensed brothel
in Melbourne
, Australia
. It entered the news in 2003 when it became one of the first brothels listed on a stock exchange
. The brothel has won the Australian Adult Industry Award
for "Best Brothel Overall" in the years 2004-2008.
The 18-room brothel is located at 9 Horne Street, Elsternwick, a southern suburb of Melbourne. As of 2006, the brothel charged A$ 90 for a room for half an hour, with the service provider charging another $90. It was also mentioned in interviews and promoted by blink 182 during an Australian tour in 1998.
Daily Planet was founded in 1975 by John Trimble, who remains the owner. Andrew Harris, who served as the company's CEO from 2002 until 2006, stated in 2002 that the operation generated annual profits of about A$
2 million.
In 2003 the brothel's operation was separated from its real estate holdings, and the real estate property trust, named Daily Planet Ltd., proceeded with an initial public offering
. The stock is traded on the Australian Stock Exchange
. Heidi Fleiss
had been hired to generate publicity. The company acquired strip club
businesses in 2003.
In 2004 the company resolved to sell the Daily Planet property for about AUS $5.7 million. The reason given was that the Business Licensing Authority would scare aware investors, with the power of treating them as associates to a brothel. The company changed its name to Planet Platinum and went on to pursue its investments in strip clubs. However, the sale of the Daily Planet real estate never happened and the property was taken off the market in 2006.
The share price of the company had initially soared to about four times the price at IPO, but as of early 2007 it had fallen back to about one quarter of the price at IPO.
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It entered the news in 2003 when it became one of the first brothels listed on a stock exchange
Stock exchange
A stock exchange is an entity that provides services for stock brokers and traders to trade stocks, bonds, and other securities. Stock exchanges also provide facilities for issue and redemption of securities and other financial instruments, and capital events including the payment of income and...
. The brothel has won the Australian Adult Industry Award
Australian Adult Industry Awards
Australian Adult Industry Awards is an annual award given for outstanding Australian achievements in the adult industry since 2001. In 2004 the organizers of the Awards were persuaded to be a partner of Australian Taxation Office to get 16,000 sex workers of Australia to declare their income...
for "Best Brothel Overall" in the years 2004-2008.
The 18-room brothel is located at 9 Horne Street, Elsternwick, a southern suburb of Melbourne. As of 2006, the brothel charged A$ 90 for a room for half an hour, with the service provider charging another $90. It was also mentioned in interviews and promoted by blink 182 during an Australian tour in 1998.
Daily Planet was founded in 1975 by John Trimble, who remains the owner. Andrew Harris, who served as the company's CEO from 2002 until 2006, stated in 2002 that the operation generated annual profits of about A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
2 million.
In 2003 the brothel's operation was separated from its real estate holdings, and the real estate property trust, named Daily Planet Ltd., proceeded with an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
. The stock is traded on the Australian Stock Exchange
Australian Stock Exchange
The Australian Securities Exchange was created by the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in July 2006. It is the primary stock exchange group in Australia....
. Heidi Fleiss
Heidi Fleiss
Heidi Lynne Fleiss is an American former madam, and also a columnist and television personality regularly featured in the 1990s in American media. She is often referred to as the "Hollywood Madam"....
had been hired to generate publicity. The company acquired strip club
Strip club
A strip club is an adult entertainment venue in which striptease or other erotic or exotic dance is regularly performed. Strip clubs typically adopt a nightclub or bar style, but can also adopt a theatre or cabaret-style....
businesses in 2003.
In 2004 the company resolved to sell the Daily Planet property for about AUS $5.7 million. The reason given was that the Business Licensing Authority would scare aware investors, with the power of treating them as associates to a brothel. The company changed its name to Planet Platinum and went on to pursue its investments in strip clubs. However, the sale of the Daily Planet real estate never happened and the property was taken off the market in 2006.
The share price of the company had initially soared to about four times the price at IPO, but as of early 2007 it had fallen back to about one quarter of the price at IPO.