Coronavirus Pushes Adult Entertainment Space Closer to Crypto 

The coronavirus pandemic has created an opportunity for several industries, even while others have significantly slowed down. 

One of the industries that fall into the former category is the adult entertainment space. With more people being forced to stay home, many have turned to porn sites to keep them entertained and engaged. 

Crypto and its Ability to Transcend Restrictions 

Reports have confirmed that Pornhub and Stripchat, two of the most popular porn sites, have seen up to a 25 percent surge in traffic in the United States alone. In comparison, Stripchat has also recorded a 300 percent increase in the number of daily sign-ups in coronavirus-hit areas like Italy. 

However, there’s a bit of a challenge for many porn stars. With lockdowns and social distancing measures being put in place, many of them are unable to find work. So, while there’s a considerable increase in the need for new content, the supply hasn’t especially been commensurate. 

While many of them have had no choice but to go online to make a living, there’s also the challenge of not being able to access your cash once you get paid. This is why several of them have turned to crypto. 

In a conversation with industry news source Decrypt, a spokesperson for Stripchat confirmed that the platform had seen a 59 percent increase in crypto payments since March 1.

A similar trend has been noticed on SpankChain, another adult entertainment platform. The platform’s payment processor, SpankPay, allows models to be paid in different cryptocurrencies – including Bitcoin and Ether. 

Company chief executive Ameen Soleimani confirmed to Decrypt that they’ve seen a 40 percent increase in the number of SpankPay transfers over the past month. 

“The cam models and clip artists are largely doing OK, but many sex workers offering physical services (strippers, etc…) who were the most impacted are now going digital and offering content and companionship through online platforms,” he added. 

Pornhub Shows a Recipe for Success

This isn’t the first notable symbiosis between cryptocurrencies and the adult entertainment scene. Last year, Pornhub was caught unawares when PayPal suddenly decided to stop offering its payment-processing services to its models, leaving up to 10,000 sex workers stranded and unable to receive payments.

The adult entertainment company explained in a blog post at the time that PayPal had suddenly quit serving it without even notifying or giving probable cause. In the interim, the platform had to make a pivot. 

Thankfully, the platform already had some notable crypto partnerships to help keep operations moving. In 2018, it partnered with Verge (XVG) last year, thus allowing users to use cryptocurrencies to purchase services. It also started working with crypto payment and billing service PumaPay last August to enable purchases.

At that time, the platform has brought on several crypto payment options to its models. In January, Pornhub announced that it had partnered with Tether to provide instant and zero-fee crypto payments through TronLink, the wallet and browser extension. 

The firm also strengthened its PumPay partnership by adding the service’s crypto payments solution.

In truth, crypto payments still account for a small fraction of total revenue on adult entertainment sites. However, with the coronavirus on a rampage and an increasing shift to the digital space, we could see increased levels of adoption soon. ]