From CNBC —

While red hot stars in the porn industry come and go, the behind-the-scenes power players tend to lead more stable professional lives. But as the industry has changed in recent years, some of the most powerful people in adult entertainment have started to transition, as well.

Larry Flynt – Arguably the most familiar name in the porn industry, Flynt is a rare porn power player who doesn’t shun the spotlight. He has been an outspoken First Amendment advocate and supporter of net neutrality, noting that several online adult entertainment companies could be forced out of business without the rules. And while other companies have struggled with the industry’s transition, Flynt has transitioned the Hustler brand into a retail, broadcast and adult novelty empire. And last year, he dropped hints that he’s thinking about taking the company public.

Peter Acworth – While the entire adult industry is hoping this year’s “Fifty Shades of Grey” film is a hit, no one has more potential upside riding on it than Acworth. His Kink.com conglomerate focuses on fetishes, with a particular focus on the bondage themes the film will explore.

Acworth, who can be brutally frank, started the company as a Columbia University Ph.D. student in 1997. Nine years later, he purchased the San Francisco Armory for $14.5 million and made it the base of the company’s operations. Last January, though, California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health fined Kink $78,000 for allegedly failing to protect its actors from blood-borne pathogens and sexually transmitted infections. Acworth’s fighting the penalty but has begun considering moving his operations to Nevada as a back-up plan.

See the rest of the list…