The Glorious Cam Model Revolt
Before I get started, I’d just like to say to everyone that opened this post because the title caught your eye. What you’re about to read won’t make sense without the context of the last post. So if I were you, I would read that first.
Now that that’s out of the way, I can really get started. It all started a few months back when the main caming platform I was using was bought out by a far less favorable cam company. For me and the rest of the models on this platform, it wasn’t just a big deal, it was a colossal life-altering deal. The reason for this being is the platform that was bought out was one of the last remaining cam sites that still had integrity.
Unlike other cam platforms where models sit in front of a web-cam while live-streaming for hundreds of random gawkers on the internet, while doing the unthinkable for hours. Hoping that while there might be hundreds of gawkers, maybe a few of them might be generous enough to tip. Or pay for a private show, while the others watch for free. This cam site was different.
On this particular platform, there was no live streaming, no pay per minute private shows, and had the some of lowest platform fees in the industry. On this platform, customers browsed through model profiles, and when they found the model they liked, they would contact them, and discuss what they wanted. Then, once all the details were settled, the model would name her price, so then the customer could pay the model on the platform, where all of her earnings would accumulate to be paid weekly after fees were deducted. Then, once payment came through showing that the client had paied for the session, there would be a video call via Skype. But after it was bought out, this streamlined platform would soon be made obsolete.
Shortly after the buyout, the new owners opened a new platform with the same name and a “2.0” attached at the end of it. On this “revamped” platform, models would now have to install a pay per minute plug-in on their computer that would then give customers the pay per minute option. The reasons why models protest this feature are simple. The first reason being, models don’t want customers to think they can just call unannounced, and then expect the model to do whatever they want just because they are charged by the minute. The second being that models don’t want to waste their time taking calls that won’t even last five minutes. The third and final reason (this is the reason I personally hate it the most) is sometimes, when these programs are implemented, the customer isn’t charged until after a full minute has passed. So some customers wait until the fifty-ninth second of the last minute to end the call so they won’t be charged for that minute, causing that model they were on the call with to lose out on anywhere from three to ten dollars. But this was just the beginning.
Shortly after, came all of the new site policies, which all catered to making the site money, and putting customers before models. This was, and still is a major problem that allows customers to scam money from models in the form of getting refunds that are deducted for the models’ payout despite receiving the service they requested, so all of that time and work that model put in, results in it being done for free. Along with other policies like site admins not reprimanding customers for abuse towards models, and implementing reprimandations for models in the form of excess fees that aren’t even disclosed in model contracts. At this point, I knew something had to be done, and so did the other models.
It started small. Before the platform was bought out, one of the models had opened a discord server where all the models could communicate, but there was a problem. The platform admins had total control, and could see everything. They were even removing posts made by models speaking out against the changes that had been put in place. But this actually lead to something amazing. A glorious model revolt. Models were protesting and boycotting the new platform, resulting in the platform admins leaving the server. This, despite seeming huge at the time, was the first small win of what was to come. What followed was a series of organized meetings models held to bounce around the idea of buying the code for the original platform that we all loved. Unfortunately for those of us who are tech-savvy, we knew this wouldn’t be a feasible option.
Eventually, I opened my own discord server, and gave it the simple name of “The Collective”. The idea behind The Collective was for it to be a space for models to come together and collaborate with each other independently without the fear of being punished. It wasn’t long until this became something much larger. Find out what it turns into in the next post.
