Number of webcam models rising
A Newsbeat investigation’s found a rising number of Indian women are working as cam models on the internet.
Market analysts the overall webcam market is nowadays worth more than a billion pounds, with online sex reveals a big part of it.
Industry insiders declare there’s been a rise in applications, partly fuelled by the economic depression, with hundreds of British women signing up to UK websites each month, many more internationally.
They appear live on webcams which can be accessed on computers around the globe.
Men generally pay premium rates for the privilege.
Twenty-three-year-old Lauren’s been working as a webcam model for some months.
The woman works with a few other girls within a basement of a semi-detached house which has been converted into a studio.
It’s been furnished to look like two different rooms. On one side there’s a bed, one the other side of the coin a sofa.
The ladies wear fancy underwear and headsets to talk to punters for the webcams. Lauren told Newsbeat she can make up to £ 30 per hour with bonus deals.
«You can imagine, it is talking dirty. You understand, if they ask me to take my top off, I will do. »
Big demand
2 weeks . secretive international industry. Girls can work from anywhere in the world, fronting naked and talking explicitly about sex.
Lauren
Lauren says she can make approximately £ 30 per hour like a webcam girl
Market analysts say general the webcam market grew from around £ 730m in 2006 to £ 1 ) 1bn in 2008.
It’s predicted to almost double in price again by 2015, with pornographic webcam sites driving a vehicle much of that growth.
They say it’s extra hidden from analysts than other segments, but is a «lively» part of the market.
The most popular site is huge in size, claiming to have around 27, 000 webcam designs and 17 million people, with around 12, 000 new sign-ups each day.
Brodie Fry set up one of the websites. He advised Newsbeat the recession offers contributed to more women working as webcam models.
«A lot of women from this sort of economic downturn will move into the adult industry.
This puts gigantic pressure on women in the industry to perform more
Object campaign group
«This is a safe alternative to becoming an escort or an adult model. There’s total anonymity. Of course , the operators don’t use their very own real names.
One site told Newsbeat in the last year it’s put another 42 British women usually a month on its catalogs.
Richard Smallbone recently set his unique webcam site. He advised Newsbeat up to 150 Indian women are signing up to UK sites a month, with many more joining international sites.
He said: «We started off with 12 users and there would be one woman working during the day.
«Eighteen months down the line, we’ve 80 different profiles, nearly anything up to 16 girls functioning during the day. »
‘Enormous pressure’
But there are concerns. Campaigners say webcam girls could be pressurised into doing points they’re not comfortable with.
Mobile phone
Mobile adult services are thought to be the next growth area
Anna van Heeswijk’s from Object, which campaigns against the sexual exploitation of girls, said the industry must be better regulated.
«It is the man who decides which women he wants to choose, depending on what she looks like and how she’s willing to behave sexually.
«This puts tremendous pressure on women within the industry to perform free chat porno more and more serious versions of pornography to be able to attract men, in order to make a full time income. »
Lauren has no such worries. The woman said her priority is usually her three-year-old daughter and insists she’s not being exploited.
«A large amount of my friends are working in clothes shops and stuff, they’ve got no money.
«I could do two changes in a week and Now i’m still earning more money than what they are and I get to devote an entire day to, every day, with my young daughter.
«I wouldn’t xxx pono want to be at work all day and also have her in nursery. I actually wouldn’t be able to see her. »
It’s not only on the internet where webcam models are becoming more popular.
Juniper Research anticipates that revenues from portable adult services will go up from £ 1 . 3 bn in 2008 to £ 2 . 9bn by simply 2013 – part of that growth is from webcams on mobiles.
