Porn has come a long way. From its early days of being something you could only see in shady back alley venues (most likely on very sticky movie theater chairs), pornography is no longer viewed with such judgment or disgust. Instead the adult entertainment industry is booming and much of that has to do with the Internet. Thank you, Internet! The impact that porn has on the Internet and vice versa, hasn’t just made it a more acceptable way to get off, but a billion dollar industry, in part to Richard Gordon, who in the 1990s figured out how consumers could make online credit card transactions for porn sites. Suddenly memberships soared and being able to download your favorite threesome film or fetish video was a piece of cake ― and furries everywhere rejoiced.
Carvaka Adult Toys has researched just how much the Internet and the adult industry go hand and hand, and its effect on each other. What they found is that porn is a very important part of the Internet (not just because so many of us enjoy it), and its impact has been loud and clear.
Here are eight ways the adult entertainment industry and the Internet have really helped each other out. (But first, check out our new podcast,I Want It That Way, which delves into the difficult and downright dirty parts of a relationship, including porn, and find more on our Soundcloud page.)
1. There Are Over 40 Million Porn Sites In the U.S. Alone
The online porn industry is thriving and growing at a rate that almost seems inconceivable. Whereas there were only 70,000 porn websites in 2001, that number is now at 42 million. So, you definitely have a lot of sites from which to choose.
2. Every Second Of Every Day Millions Of People Are Viewing Porn
According to Carvaka Adult Toys' research, there are at least 30 million unique visitors checking out online porn every second of every day. Basically, there’s a good chance that at least one of your coworkers is watching some right now.
3. Over A Third Of Internet Downloads Are Porn Related
While there’s no surprise that pornographic downloads are plentiful, but what you may not know is that they account for over a third of them. To be exact, 35 percent of all Internet downloads are pornographic in nature.
4. 25 Percent Of All Internet Searches Are Related To Porn
Sure, 25 percent doesn’t see that high of a percentage, but when you consider it’s worldwide and break it down by numbers it really puts it all into perspective. In other words, that 25 percent actually means 68 million porn searches a day.
5. The U.S. Isn’t Even In The Top 10 Countries When It Comes To Biggest Shares Of Porn Sites
Say what?! I know! I was surprised, too. But according to the study, the country that shares the most adult websites is ― wait for it ― Iraq.
Not far behind in second and third place are Egypt and Serbia, respectively. Also on the list, from fourth place to the 15th place are Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Peru, Croatia, Chile, Spain, Morocco, Italy, and Hungary. Yo, Americans!? What’s going on? Why are we not on that list?
6. We Can Thank The Porn Industry For Introducing The Internet To Streaming Video
Although you can pretty stream anything these days, it was Red Light District, a Dutch porn company, that in 1994 started it all. CNN.com would follow a year later, but YouTube wouldn't jump on the wagon until 2005 ― 11 years after Red Light District.
7. Porn Is Why Bandwidth Had To Increase
According to the study, one of the biggest contributions that the porn industry gave the Internet is the need for increased bandwidth. “Because there was a perpetual demand for more, different and better pornographic products, bandwidth needed to grow,” says Frederick Lane, author of Obscene Profits: The Entrepreneurs of Pornography in the Cyber Age.
8. Pornography Led The Way In Making Webcams And Subtitles
We may use video chat and webcams for office work purposes now, but once upon a time these things were strictly used for live sex shows until companies caught on and realized they could be used for other professions, too.
Porn companies also made strides in creating automated captions and subtitles, so their consumers could enjoy their product on the DL as possible. This software has also made its way into other companies that use it as marketing abilities for things other than porn ― because apparently not everything is about porn? Guess so.
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