Free, advertising supported websites are an increasingly dominant force on the adult Internet today. Deprived of any direct revenues from “selling” the content they contain, these sites have to find alternative ways of dealing with the cost of purchasing content — still one of the biggest expenses involved in running an adult website.

One cost-cutting method is to avoid the use of higher-priced exclusive content, instead relying on the same content being offered by other site operators — your rivals.

Non-exclusive content powers many adult websites and lowers the barriers to entry for deploying a high-quality, competitive product. For example, AdultCentro offers an extremely comprehensive feed library with enhanced display features that can instantly and affordable turn your idea into a website — or turn your website into a powerhouse.

But if cost-savings is your ultimate goal and you want a legal alternative to stealing the material you intend to use on your site, there is always sponsor-provided photo and video content intended for affiliate promotions. Free adult sites have long made use of this popular resource that can be leveraged with creativity and the sponsor’s forbearance to deliver compelling, profit-driving presentations — even within a paysite’s member’s area if you do it correctly, so as not to upset paying customers.

Although free may sound as good to you as it does to today’s porn surfer, unless you are running a tube site or something similar, having the multiple watermarks typical of affiliate content displayed on your site leads to brand confusion and dilution, making the use of sponsor content application-dependent and something to handle with care.

Besides, non-exclusive content is available so inexpensively today and from so many vendors that there is little reason not to make at least a minimal investment in your site.

Oh, and that pesky piracy issue? What do you care, when the content isn’t your own? Sure, you may have licensed the rights to use it, but enforcing the copyright is up to the content’s owner, not to you; freeing you from the cumbersome burden of sending out and following up on DMCA notifications and allowing more time for traffic building, etc.

Of course, when you have the same wares for sale as your competitors, developing service distinctions is vital. Even if you’re giving your porn away for free, there needs to be a reason why the punter will choose your free porn site instead of your competitor’s.

These reasons include higher resolutions and bitrates, more robust search and tagging, social media integration, faster loading designs, better selection and unique approaches.

At the end of the day, a competitive adult website in 2012, whether a paysite or free, requires a mix of non-exclusive and exclusive (or at least semi-exclusive) content for it to stand apart from its competitors; providing prospects with a reason to (re)visit, become a member, or to simply click through to its sponsors.