In March 1997, he created FantasyMan Island,[3] an online dating area for PlanetOut, which ran until January 2005, and wrote a weekly relationship advice column there.
In December 2000, Hartley was introduced to Fred Seibert by former AOL co-worker Emil Rensing and joined Frederator in January 2001.
While there, he developed online marketing campaigns for Seventeen magazine, Tiger Beat and The New TNN (later Spike TV) for Viacom.
Guests on the show have included: Donald Trump, Martha Stewart, Meredith Vieira, Charo, Olivia Newton-John, Samuel L. Jackson, k.d.
In 2007 Derek Hartley was nominated for a GayVN Award for Best Non-Sex Performance in the film Big Rig by COLT Studio Group and the following year hosted the ceremonies.