LAS VEGAS — ABC’s “Nightline” offered a segment last night that took a look at the growing number of adult cam stars — from novice couples to experienced porn talent — who are finding steady streams of revenue broadcasting to their teeming numbers of curious fans.
The “Nightline” story explained that at any given moment thousands of streaming shows can be found on the web, and that some of the biggest adult companies — Chaturbate, MyFreeCams, CAM4 and Live Jasmin — are seeing millions of visitors each day, necessitating a larger pool of broadcasters.
“Real couples have discovered that they too can make money without stepping outside their home by simply rigging their daily lives with cameras and selling intimacy,” an intro to the “Nightline” segment began.
“Nightline” focused on one couple who moonlight on Chaturbate, streaming their shows to thousands of viewers. Peppermint and her husband, Dusty, have more than 80,000 followers but deny they are indeed “porn stars.”
“We are very lucky we have a passionate relationship,” said Peppermint, who emphasized that the couple’s sexual appetite isn’t going away, whether broadcast live or not.
Peppermint and Dusty claimed that their biggest audiences have numbered more than 7,000 — all with a minimal amount of equipment, including a MacBook, a tripod and Logitech 1080p camera.
ABC also took a peek at adult performer Ariana Marie, a cam star who years ago transitioned into porn. Marie admits that she’s back at camming after shooting hardcore content, which she said kept her persona relevant in the eyes of porn fans.
“I came back to camming because four years later I have a name,” Marie said. “I’m branding myself a little bit better, and I don’t want to oversaturate myself with a bunch of content for other companies,” Marie said.
Marie streams from her Las Vegas home, where she and her husband, former porn star Jack Spade, have set up their own cam operation, complete with 22 webcams throughout their living quarters, that she and other models can stream from.
Marie said she prefers camming because the money is more consistent than shooting conventional porn and that its more interesting to offer intimacy in an interactive environment.
“I can connect with my fans,” Marie said. “With camming, it’s a one-on-one personal connection. It’s almost like a girlfriend experience.”
Lynn Comella, a UNLV professor within the school’s Gender and Sexuality Studies section, said that the adult cam industry is one to pay attention to because of its big numbers in popularity.
“There is something there that consumers are willing to pay for, and a lot of people really think that has a lot to do with the high level of interactivity,” Comella said.
The "Nightline" segment can be accessed here.
Pictured: Ariana Marie
