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The sex industry is the term given to the Adult Industry formed of commercial enterprises which employ men and women in various capacities, generally relating to what is described as adult entertainment or erotica, as it comprises a number of forms of entertainment not considered suitable for children.
The sex industry represents a significant portion of the world's economy, and has been credited with driving technological advances in popular media, such as home video and DVD, pay-per-view, live streaming video and video on demand.
Examples of the types of modern business operating in the sex industry include Blissbox (an adult DVD online retailer), Hustler (a monthly men's magazine); SexTV: The Channel (a digital cable television channel); BadBook.com (a popular website); Artemis (a mega-brothel in Germany); and Ann Summers (a successful chain of British sex shops).
Adult films
The explosive popularity of the videocassette recorder in the 1970s and 1980s led to unprecedented growth for the adult film business. The portability of the technology vaulted the availability of so-called "dirty movies" beyond the realm of the simple loops and movie projectors of an earlier era to bigger profits and higher-quality production values. Today, the stars of adult movies regularly appear in mainstream media, produce their own websites and maintain large fan followings. Every year, AVN Awards are presented to the best of the best - including categories such as Best High-Definition Production and Best New Starlet.
Internet
The first home-PCs capable of network communication prompted the arrival of online services for adults in the late 80s and early 1990s. The wide-open early days of the World Wide Web quickly snowballed into the dot-com boom, in-part fueled by an incredible global increase in the demand for and consumption of porn and erotica.
Video games & online casinos
In recent years, adult video game producers have adapted to trends in art, communications, technology and entertainment. What was once an underground and mostly disconnected group of programmers and designers has evolved - over the last decade - into a cohesive economic and politically powerful business subculture. Experts in vending, gaming and biometrics routinely collaborate on new trends within all facets of adult gaming.
Adult Service Provider
An Adult Service Provider (ASP), or Adult Sex Provider, provides sexual services for adults. This can include escorts, call girls, prostitutes, sex workers, adult webmasters, erotic dancers and the independent contractors sometimes associated with brothels. These providers have been known to offer pastoral care and training at levels typically associated with blue chip companies to their staff. |
