Page 74 - AVN January 2016

stars understood the need to adapt and change
and slowly they started to leave others behind.
Cam girls are most definitely seen in much higher
respect today. …
“We cannot say all webcam models are the ‘new
porn stars.’ Actually it depends on the girl. There
are webcam models that indeed are doing porn,
clips, scenes and movies classifying themselves as
porn stars and there are amazing cam girls that will
never classify themselves as porn stars because they
identify themselves more closely to the webcam
industry.”
Wood continued, “Like everything in life, there’s
a place for everyone and each personally will find
their own path.”
Industry veteran Yuval Kijel, the head of
CamBuilder for Streamate, told AVN, “Hell yes,
no doubt about it” that cam girls are the new porn
stars.
“The top cam models are becoming well known
to a large public,” Kijel said. “Most likely they get
more eyeballs than many porn stars, and they make
as much if not more than top porn stars. I think
over the next years they will become the top-tier
porn stars.”
Kijel’s colleague Liz Rekevics, the marketing
director for Streamate, said, “The level of
popularity depends on the performer.”
“With the evolution of the cam business
and major gain in popularity over the last 10
years I think that cam models have much more
opportunity to gain the type of notoriety that
people typically associate with porn stars,” Rekevics
FEATURE
Top left: ImLive’s gorgeousluan is among the platform’s most popular
models, while newcomer BarbyGold (above) is coming on strong;
HarlieQuinnX (right) is one of Chaturbate’s top draws.
74 | AVN.com | 1.16
said. “Cam models have the freedom to be their own
boss, make their own hours and be fully in control of
their image and what the consumer sees. …
“Some cam models enjoy meeting fans and attending
industry events while others like to keep their
interactions strictly on cam. I think in the end the cam
business has room for everyone. You are seeing a lot
more ‘porn stars’ regularly on cams and I think that is a
trend that will continue.”
Dan Leal, one of the busiest shooters in adult, who
produces weekly live shows for his studio Immoral
Productions, remarked, “Cam girls are truly the next
generation of porn stars. A woman who is a webcam
model can make a very lucrative and have a long-term
career, much longer than if she was to try and make the
same amount of money by shooting porn scenes alone.”
Leal pulled no punches in theorizing why fewer stars
stand out in today’s porn biz.
“There are very, very few that are going to make it
these days,” Leal said. “The real reason why you’re
not getting quality girls coming into the industry is
production is down. Production is at an all-time low
in the American market. Realistically, porn is never
going to be a full-time job for anybody. They better be
webcam models. They better be dancing or going to
school. There’s not enough work to go around.”
Without question the power of social media can help
a cam girl build her own brand in quick fashion. Most
cam girls alert their followers on Twitter or Instagram
they are jumping on cam. It’s as easy to follow them
online as it is to interact once you’re in a virtual chat
room.
While each cam site works its own way, the idea
is largely the same. Once online, viewers enjoy an
amazing assortment of models from which to choose.
When they decide on a model they enter a public forum
with other users, where they can chat with and tip the
model.
The more tips the models get, the more naughty the
interaction becomes. Users also have the option to go
into private, one-on-one sessions with the model for
additional fees. In order to do that, users must pay a
per-minute fee and often tip additional money on top
of that.
Natalie Star, a native of California who cams
exclusively for Flirt4Free and has been active on the
platform for the past six years, says the best part about
camming is “the ability to let my hair down and just
not give a fuck.”
“On cam there’s no script and no expectations,” Star
told AVN from her home in Las Vegas. “I can just have
fun and be myself.”
She believes cam girls are indeed the new porn stars.
“In my honest opinion based off of what I’ve seen
to date within the cam industry I would have to say
that to an extent we are,” Star reasoned. “However,
a more accurate term for those of us who have been
able to do this for a living should be ‘adult star.’”
Nowadays the leading cam models earn tens of
thousands per month. And it’s not just the women —
all kinds of people make their living doing cam shows,
including straight and gay men and trans models.
Today’s elite porn stars do not earn anything close to
that level of income from their sex scenes alone.
“I don’t think there is a ‘next-generation’ adult
star,” said Lewis Adams, a sales executive and
producer for the past 14 years who currently works
for Metro Content and formerly sold DVDs for Pulse
Distribution.
“There will never be another Jenna Jameson because
she was a product of the production companies
building her and selling her. I agree that cam sites are
the future of the performer. It gives them ‘personal’
contact directly with their customer and that’s
something that could only be done in a club on the
occasion that the performer was in the same city as
her fan. Today, access is 24-7 and the connection is
like never before. However, there are so many cam
performers today that the competition is too vast for
one person to be ‘it.’”
Some performers even sell merchandise such as
photos, videos, underwear and toys, while they’re on
cam. It can also be a way to cross-promote their official
websites. The latest trend is for cam sites to sign girls
exclusively for a set period of time.
“The best part of camming is the scheduling. There
really is none!” said Mitsuko Doll, aka xWildThingx on
MyFreeCams. “Although of course having a consistent
schedule helps greatly, you really can wake up one day
and say, ‘I’d rather play video games all day,’ and no one
can stop you.
“There’s so many great things about camming,
though. Before camming I was a broke student coming
from a bad situation and camming gave me financial
security, helped me pay off my college loans and taught
me so many things that can be applicable to business
in ‘the real world.’ Oh and having orgasms everyday
doesn’t hurt either.”
Director and studio mogul Jules Jordan agreed,
admitting, “You can make a lot of money if you’re
famous on cam.”