Are Studios Still Necessary?

[Lucid1]

I realize in asking this, that in the past, the economics and availability of internet access in certain regions sometimes necessitated that models did what they must to get a foot in the door, but considering the availability of internet access and low cost PC's, are we still at a point where studios are necessary?

 

[Omne35]

I realize in asking this, that in the past, the economics and availability of internet access in certain regions sometimes necessitated that models did what they must to get a foot in the door, but considering the availability of internet access and low cost PC's, are we still at a point where studios are necessary?

Depends on the country. In a lot of them cameras, internet access and PCs are still out of reach for average people.

 

[SMuser69]

I realize in asking this, that in the past, the economics and availability of internet access in certain regions sometimes necessitated that models did what they must to get a foot in the door, but considering the availability of internet access and low cost PC's, are we still at a point where studios are necessary?

$1000 isn't consider "small" amount still
Good internet isn't cheap in most the world
Good computer aren't cheap in most the world
Landlords don't like loud screaming tenants
People have roommates
Parents don't like sex sounds from their children's rooms

You have to remember camming is often the last choice of income not the first to models tend to choose it when money is critical.

 

[Violet Dawn]

low cost PC's?

Yeah, no. Low cost PCs are essentially just throwing money down the drain. At least I see it that way. Plus a lot of people don't have the money to shell out that anyway. And again, it would be a massive waste of money. My PC is 850 dollars and it runs well. Anything I have had lower runs shit and I made shit with them. Then add my 100 dollar a month internet bill, which again, anything lower is unsatisfactory, and then my 60 dollar webcam. That's about a thousand up front. A lot of people can't afford that. A lot of people can't even afford half of that for shitty equipment. That's the reality.

 

[Magnolia]

I might be remembering wrong, but aren't there some countries where you can't do adult work independently? Like you have to work for a company or a studio? Also some people might still live at home or with roommates/family and don't have the opportunity to cam from home. From what I've seen most studios are junk, but some offer things like managing social media, promotion, organizing shows/content with other performers, daily pay, etc.

That being said I'm of the opinion that if you can work for yourself, do it. Camming is a lot of work and research to do on your own, but I'd rather do that and not have someone take a cut of my pay or have a boss.

 

[SaffronBurke]

Living arrangements in some cultures allow no privacy and necessitate using a studio for the space. I used to know a lady from Belarus. The area that she came from, it was common to have 3-4 generations of family living in a small apartment, with aunts/uncles/cousins often included in there. An aspiring cam model in that living situation wouldn't have a damn closet to herself, let alone enough space and privacy to cam.

 

[zoober]

As has already been said it's largely a space issue. Sure, sure all cam girls are single, it's just hubby and the kid(s) are at home and home is plenty small even without her parents living there also.

Studio models know damn fine well they're handing over c.50% of their takings (after the website has taken its cut) to a studio that owns their cam model name (with followers attached), so while there can be some benefits e.g. subsidised holidays that can involve taking modelling pics for profiles, they'd typically work from home/for themselves if they could

 

[Lucid1]

Studio models know damn fine well they're handing over c.50% of their takings (after the website has taken its cut) to a studio that owns their cam model name (with followers attached), so while there can be some benefits e.g. subsidised holidays that can involve taking modelling pics for profiles, they'd typically work from home/for themselves if they could

Well, that's kind of the reason I posed the question to begin with. I know there are certain countries where studios are a necessity, but more so here in the States I wouldn't have thought that studios were that much in need, yet I still regularly hear stories of college students being taken advantage of.

 

[SaffronBurke]

Well, that's kind of the reason I posed the question to begin with. I know there are certain countries where studios are a necessity, but more so here in the States I wouldn't have thought that studios were that much in need, yet I still regularly hear stories of college students being taken advantage of.

That's more often due to not knowing the industry very well and signing up to a studio without knowing what it is.

 

[zoober]

Well, that's kind of the reason I posed the question to begin with. I know there are certain countries where studios are a necessity, but more so here in the States I wouldn't have thought that studios were that much in need, yet I still regularly hear stories of college students being taken advantage of.

I guess, but you got to realise there's an element of BS/poor me/woe is me BS to get sympathy and/or white knight tips (a big nasty studio made me do it and ran away etc.,), plus plenty folks that become cam girls live seriously chaotic lives. Neither of those things are ever gonna change

 

[Katy Boleyn]

About the college thing specifically - most college dorm rooms forbid camming outright or would if they knew. College internet is generally very shitty (going by the local colleges here anyways), especially to the dorms.

We have a LOT of requests by models looking for secure places to cam. Just being able to "go to a job" is often more motivating for some people than working from home. We do have partnerships in Maryland and Vegas so models do have a safe and clean place to go, but we've turned down a lot of other partnerships because the people running the cam houses were simply sketchy a.f. These same people will throw up ads on BP and CL and get a line of girls wanting to be exploited for what they think is good money. These places are NOT following OSHA or any kinds of regulations, and you're lucky if they even issue your proper 1099 at the end of the year.

 

[Ambers Troll]

I recently found myself meeting 20% of models from a large studio (40), statistically unlikely. Studios can offer access to members that you usually wouldn't meet were it not for working as a group.

The work-space and support of others can make a studio a good option, they rarely seem the best option though: You will always pay a bit more for the convenience.

 

[Dan N]

Are Studios Still Necessary?
Yes and No
My personal opinion.
Among already mentioned situations in which a model can find herself (like a discreet place/room to perform or tech stuff) there are pros and cons working for yourself or registered with a studio.

Here are a few pros and cons working with a studio:
Pro:
- assuming a studio is focusing on model's necessities and not only exploiting her/him for income, its good to have additional support (tech, promo, advertising, traffic, online/offline exposure, event participation, booking, investing in health/beauty)
- legality and benefits from having a paid job with standard contract. In my country a small percentage from income goes to pension fund, health care if you have a contractual legit job and declare the earnings.
Con:
- the only two cons I know and are "popular" among studio managers are high commission rates and exploiting the webcam performer (mind and body)

If someone has a full list with pros and cons, I will be glad to know.
Of course solo models will tend to find more cons in working with studios even if they didn't had any experience or this type of experience
"i know a model who worked.... and she told me..."
I worked as a webcam performer a long time ago, collaboration with a studio but I left (after 4 or 5 months) because the commission was 70% from my revenue, but back then studio managers were a bit more "human" and polite. This days some of them are a nightmare and some are ok to work with.

Are Studios Still Necessary?
Its a difficult question because each performer has its own story, possibilities and conflicts so a definitely No or a definitely Yes can't be an answer.
Again this is my personal opinion .

 

[zoober]

A studio con would be (E.European anyway), the business model of cam girls working as many cam sites as possible at the same time, hunting down privates; by definition there's literally more wear and tear. Hence, the used to work in a studio, now working from home approach of working 1-2 sites at most and building up a pool of regulars with greater focus on tips in public chat.

A studio pro would be its a hella crash course in camming, the practicalities and the tricks of the trade re: how to work clients, fake an anal show etc., plus scope for camraderie

 

[JillianWeathers]

I think so. You just have to know what you're getting yourself into, and really access whether or not that particular studio is making you an offer that benefits you.

I worked behind the scenes for a studio that used to find 18-21 year old girls with very little going on in their life and go above and beyond to build them up. Teach them everything they need to know, set up and even maintain all their social networks, pay them $2k a month just to work 15 hours a week, set up work with other more established models, provide all the equipment (including housing, daycare, etc).

The studio was charging 50% of the profit which most of those models were more than find with in the beginning. But over time as their situation improved they would feel differently about paying out so much. Right now that studio is in court with a lot of those models that used rave about them.

Long story short. Studios can be great, or awful. It's all about you and your needs! Do not sign anything unless you've really read through it and thought about if the terms are right for you.

 

[Lucid1]

About the college thing specifically - most college dorm rooms forbid camming outright or would if they knew. College internet is generally very shitty (going by the local colleges here anyways), especially to the dorms.

We have a LOT of requests by models looking for secure places to cam. Just being able to "go to a job" is often more motivating for some people than working from home. We do have partnerships in Maryland and Vegas so models do have a safe and clean place to go, but we've turned down a lot of other partnerships because the people running the cam houses were simply sketchy a.f. These same people will throw up ads on BP and CL and get a line of girls wanting to be exploited for what they think is good money. These places are NOT following OSHA or any kinds of regulations, and you're lucky if they even issue your proper 1099 at the end of the year.

I overheard a model mention in free chat a few days ago - that instead of studios, certain camgirls were being provided apartments or rooms in houses with internet connections, where rent and a basic income were provided in exchange for "X" number of hours of work. That would seem way less dodgy than a studio setting, but I don't have a clue if it's true or not.

 

[zoober]

instead of studios, certain camgirls were being provided apartments or rooms in houses with internet connections, where rent and a basic income were provided in exchange for "X" number of hours of work. That would seem way less dodgy than a studio setting, but I don't have a clue if it's true or not.

Seen that a couple of times and is potentially waaaaaaay more dodgy. Cam girl to boss - I don;t want to work tonight. Boss - OK, don't. And hand in the keys of your apartment when you leave in 1 hour.

Providing accommodation gives employers massive leverage, always has, always will

 

[THE MOLLIE MARIE]

Seen that a couple of times and is potentially waaaaaaay more dodgy. Cam girl to boss - I don;t want to work tonight. Boss - OK, don't. And hand in the keys of your apartment when you leave in 1 hour.

Providing accommodation gives employers massive leverage, always has, always will

Yeah that sounds like a horror story waiting to happen. Who wants their boss to have access to their entire life anyway?

 

[JillianWeathers]

Seen that a couple of times and is potentially waaaaaaay more dodgy. Cam girl to boss - I don;t want to work tonight. Boss - OK, don't. And hand in the keys of your apartment when you leave in 1 hour.

Providing accommodation gives employers massive leverage, always has, always will

The key to any situation where there are mutual expectations, is not to assume. Discuss every detail, write it out in a contract, and then refrain from changing that contract (if a person believes they can change the contract in the future they are less likely to abide by it).

There really aren't any jobs with the potential to make the type of money these top models do where you can randomly tell your boss you don't feel like working and expect to still be employed. I'm sympathetic because for a lot of models, this is their first job and they are learning as they go. But that's just not the real world. There are exceptions, but in general, I believe every model that's considering this her main source of income should be shooting for not only at least a 40 hour work week. But should be pretty consistent about when she will and wont be online. Communication is huge!

 

[zoober]

There really aren't any jobs with the potential to make the type of money these top models do where you can randomly tell your boss you don't feel like working and expect to still be employed. I'm sympathetic because for a lot of models, this is their first job and they are learning as they go. But that's just not the real world. There are exceptions, but in general, I believe every model that's considering this her main source of income should be shooting for not only at least a 40 hour work week. But should be pretty consistent about when she will and wont be online.

Don't think anyone is talking "top model". In an eastern European context, well Romanian, it's more you can earn X in a regular job or you can earn 3x X as a cam girl. Then when they start they learn 3x X involves a shit load of privates. It's not just a question of hours worked as it is how hard those hours are

 

[JillianWeathers]

Don't think anyone is talking "top model". In an eastern European context, well Romanian, it's more you can earn X in a regular job or you can earn 3x X as a cam girl. Then when they start they learn 3x X involves a shit load of privates. It's not just a question of hours worked as it is how hard those hours are

I'm not discounting that. Every single model's experience will be unique. What's universal is that you're never going to reach your own full potential in this business if you don't treat it with the same respect you would any other.

 

[jolietjake]

This is a tad off topic but related, at least from a member perspective. I have been chatting on SM with a model whom I thought was from Spain. I recently learned she is from Colombia, quite accidentally. And no, I am not stalking her (just FYI). That made it much more likely she was working in a studio. During our chats I sometimes observe that the text comes in before I see her typing when she is responding to something I say. I got curious enough to ask SM support about it. I didn't see a technical reason for that, and neither did SM support. So I now think I am sometimes chatting with her and sometimes she is getting help. Mostly because the syntax is inconsistent. This is usually in exclusive and from my perspective I am paying to chat with her and not a surrogate. I understand this whole "world" is fantasy land on some level, but to me that is a going a little too far. She does advertise English as a language she speaks. I am curious what you all think about that.

 

[zoober]

I'm not discounting that. Every single model's experience will be unique. What's universal is that you're never going to reach your own full potential in this business if you don't treat it with the same respect you would any other.

Kinda not really. I think you need to take different business models into account, in particular, that the Romanian studio model's experience differs from the typical American's on a systematic basis. There it is a largely routine job i.e. working shifts 5 days a week in a studio, but within this its about simultaneously working 4 or more camsites, trying to get in as many privates as possible to make token/sales targets i.e. it genuinely is a grind with even the language used differing e.g.; cam site users are frequently referred to as clients.


It's also notable that studio models have struggled to adapt to the OHMIBOD/lovense thang, that being about gradually building up to a public goal on 1 or 2 camsites. not jumping from one private show into another

 

[SMuser69]

This is a tad off topic but related, at least from a member perspective. I have been chatting on SM with a model whom I thought was from Spain. I recently learned she is from Colombia, quite accidentally. And no, I am not stalking her (just FYI). That made it much more likely she was working in a studio. During our chats I sometimes observe that the text comes in before I see her typing when she is responding to something I say. I got curious enough to ask SM support about it. I didn't see a technical reason for that, and neither did SM support. So I now think I am sometimes chatting with her and sometimes she is getting help. Mostly because the syntax is inconsistent. This is usually in exclusive and from my perspective I am paying to chat with her and not a surrogate. I understand this whole "world" is fantasy land on some level, but to me that is a going a little too far. She does advertise English as a language she speaks. I am curious what you all think about that.

This depends on the translators actions. Translators can sabotage the model and the model may never realize it. I've seen very straight forward translators that explain the situation upfront and things are cool. Then you have translators that pretend to be the girl or attempt to fake romance you or try to take attention from the model. This can be both annoying to the member and cause problems down the road later.

tl;dr translators aren't only available to studio models. Can be good or bad to the model. The money gained from being able to interact with the English segment of the cam market usually makes up for the cost of the translator in east euro countries.

P.S. I think Romania has better English teaching programs in their school system than the US does.

 

[jolietjake]

This depends on the translators actions. Translators can sabotage the model and the model may never realize it. I've seen very straight forward translators that explain the situation upfront and things are cool. Then you have translators that pretend to be the girl or attempt to fake romance you or try to take attention from the model. This can be both annoying to the member and cause problems down the road later.

tl;dr translators aren't only available to studio models. Can be good or bad to the model. The money gained from being able to interact with the English segment of the cam market usually makes up for the cost of the translator in east euro countries.

P.S. I think Romania has better English teaching programs in their school system than the US does.

Hey, thanks for the reply. I am REALLY new to this forum and to the world of camgirls. Trying to make some semblance of sense of it. I think sometimes it is the translator that I am actually talking to just because of the difference in syntax from other replies and the thing about the video showing her typing after the message showed up. So it looks like the translator is speaking for the model. This is in exclusive on SM also, not in any kind of group chat.

 

[vulpes]

I recently left a studio. It seemed great at first, but I was also at my wit's end and was scared to go into the world of camming on my own (and living with parents). Since then, I've had difficulty focusing but I feel a lot better. The owner used SO many scummy scare tactics to get girls to earn a certain amount of income in a week. They didn't even have the best equipment or anything. I was dual streaming (SM and their -honestly outdated - site) in an office space. I felt so confined and unable to really express myself because you could hear everyone in the hallways. Yes, it was nice for a little while, but everything they provided was something I could do on my own anyhow.

 

[SMuser69]

This is in exclusive on SM also, not in any kind of group chat.

It's not exclusive to SM since most models with translators also split stream on multiple sites at once. I will say it's more common on pvt based sites vs public sites because the higher requirement to communicate to a member. Girls that can't speak English well are more likely to sit and grind tokens with a lovesense now than try to talk on public sites.