Number of webcam models rising

A Newsbeat investigation’s found a rising number of British women are working as webcam models on the internet.

Market analysts say the overall webcam market is nowadays worth more than a billion pounds, with online sex shows a big part of it.

Industry insiders say there’s been a rise in applications, partly fuelled by the downturn, with hundreds of British women of all ages signing up to UK websites every month, many more internationally.

They appear live on webcams which can be accessed on computers all over the world.

Men usually pay premium rates intended porn asian for the privilege.

Twenty-three-year-old Lauren’s been operating as a webcam model for a couple of months.

She works with a few other girls in a basement of a semi-detached house which has been converted into a studio.

It’s been furnished to resemble two different rooms. On a single side there’s a bed, on the other 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 additional bonuses.

“You can imagine, it is talking dirty. You know, if they ask me to take my top off, I will carry out. ”

Big demand
It’s a secretive international industry. Women can work from anywhere in the world, fronting naked and talking clearly about sex.

Lauren
Lauren says she can make approximately £ 30 per hour as a webcam girl
Market analysts say overall 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 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 big in size, claiming to have around 27, 000 webcam products and 17 million users, with around 12, 1000 new sign-ups each day.

Brodie Fry create one of the websites. He informed Newsbeat the recession possesses contributed to more women working because webcam models.

“A lot of women from this sort of economic downturn will transfer to the adult industry.

This puts enormous pressure on women within the industry to perform more
Object campaign group
“This is actually a safe alternative to becoming a great escort or an adult style. There’s total anonymity. Naturally , the operators don’t use the real names.

One site told Newsbeat in the last year it’s put a supplementary 42 British women normally a month on its literature.

Richard Smallbone recently set his personal webcam site. He informed Newsbeat up to 150 British isles women are signing up to UK sites a month, with many additional joining international sites.

He said: “We started off with 12 profiles and there would be one girl working during the day.

“Eighteen months down the line, today we have 80 different profiles, anything at all up to 16 girls functioning during the day. ”

‘Enormous pressure’
But there are concerns. Campaigners say webcam girls could possibly be pressurised into doing things 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 mulheres maduras peladas campaigns against the sexual exploitation of women, said the industry needs to be better regulated.

“It is the man who also decides which women he wants to choose, depending on what she looks like and how she actually is willing to behave sexually.

“This puts substantial pressure on women within the industry to perform more and more extreme versions of pornography in order to attract men, in order to make a full time income. ”

Lauren has no such worries. The woman said her priority is certainly her three-year-old daughter and insists she’s not being exploited.

“A lot of my friends are working in clothes shops and stuff, they’ve already no money.

“I could do two adjustments in a week and I’m just still earning more money than what they are and I get to spend all day, every day, with my little girl.

“I more than likely want to be at work all day and get her in nursery. We wouldn’t be able to see her. ”

It is not only on the internet where webcam models are becoming more popular.

Juniper Research anticipates that revenues from mobile phone adult services will climb from £ 1 . 3 or more bn in 2008 to £ 2 . 9bn simply by 2013 – part of that growth is from webcams on mobiles.