Chapter 5 - Food For Thought

The psychology and culture of camming, the Internet's latest and most controversial form of entertainment, is the backdrop for this international thriller that explores romance and personal discovery.

Richard Dalton's computer made a beep when he received an email message from his college friend John Sullivan, the person who first told him about the WorldsGreatCams website. The email said John would be driving from Portland to the Seattle area for a couple of days and asked if he would like to meet for dinner on Thursday night. Richard replied that the timing was fine, and it was not long before the two were at an East Coast-style Italian restaurant called Vito's. The restaurant had been in business for decades, and it was rumored that at one time Seattle’s mobsters used to gather there. The food was fantastic, and thanks to touches like mid-century decor, a grand piano, and vinyl booths, it still seemed like a place where shady deals might slide under the table. John arrived a little late and smirked when he spotted Richard in a booth at the rear of the restaurant.

"Well, John... looks like you're doing well," said Richard.

"And you, too."

John was one of those people who seemed to age slower than the rest; perhaps it was his easygoing lifestyle. He never let anything bother him, and he was always diplomatic with everyone he met. It's possible that John never made one enemy in his life.

In a short while, they ordered specials from the chalkboard and put their menus aside.

"Okay," said Richard, "let's skip the introductory chitchat and get to the elephant in the room." The two snickered because they both knew what the inevitable topic of conversation would be.

In a facetious tone of surprise John quipped: "Oh? So I see that you have followed up on my email, and that you have watched WorldsGreatCams after all."

"It's quite a scene, huh. And there's a much bigger story here than just the invention of a new form of entertainment. I did some reading in the Wikipedia camgirl article. Camming has become a two-billion-dollar a year industry, and in less than a decade it's taken over half the porn business. That's quite a feat for a group of independent adolescent girls, armed only with laptop computers and inexpensive video cameras. 

John stopped eating an appetizer and leaned forward. "But the label of porn isn't really very descriptive when we talk about WorldsGreatCams and its camgirls, is it? There's much more going on than just nudity and fondling. Have you noticed the way many camgirls structure their shows so that displays of nudity are also accompanied by periods of conversation via the chat-window? At times it looks more like a form of video journalism than a striptease act." 

"Exactly. Many of the WGC camgirls have powerful verbal skills. They can quickly read the flow of viewer comments in the chat-window and select what topics are best for elaboration. Because the pace of chat can occasionally be rapid, it sometimes seems like they're in a verbal ping pong match with their viewers."

John laughed. "Yeah, verbal ping pong... that's just about it! Many have revealed that as teenagers, and before they came to camming, they had participated in Internet forums for years. And some even had their own personal blogs that attracted hundreds of followers. In a way, many camgirls were Internet journalists long before they bought their first video camera."

"And some can blend comedy into their cam shows, like that MerryLee character. She knows how to do improvisational comedy, and has attracted hundreds of loyal fans who'll show up in her chatroom every chance they get. She's also a talented singer and adept at dance. Another reason why I respect MerryLee is, that despite all her traditional skills, she never shows any snobbery toward the other camgirls or the profession."

 

John smiled, looked down, and slowly shook his head. "That MerryLee is the reason my wife has also become a fan of WorldsGreatCams. Sometimes we'll skip HBO just so we can watch MerryLee do her thing." John's second wife had always been very open-minded when it came to art or sex. She never had a jealous bone in her body, and it didn't surprise Richard one bit that she might enjoy the more versatile camgirls like MerryLee.

"Funny... I love the way that WGC frequently defies stereotypes and clichés, and it now seems I've found a married couple who enjoys watching cam shows together. Speaking of stereotypes and false inferences, most people don't realize it, but the porn industry has frequently been a driving force behind the development of new technology that eventually migrated to the mainstream market. For instance, the e-commerce and security solutions that we use today with PayPal were first pioneered in the 1990s by a pinup called Danni Ashe. At that time she launched a commercial website for softcore porn that became one of the busiest sites of the web. And the streaming video that we see on YouTube got its start by a Dutch porn company called Red Light District, which developed the first Internet-based video streaming system in 1995."

 

John gestured with his hand as it held a fork. "Well, and what's also amazing here is that we're seeing the early days of an entirely new form of entertainment. Kind of like the early days of film when motion pictures went from a penny-arcade contraption to the first silent movie theaters. In the early days of silent movies, filmmakers had no idea what they had in hand: they weren't really sure that movies could be anything more than a cheap novelty. But eventually, some early directors had the vision to realize, that even without sound, film could still deliver emotion. Silent films would soon be able to make people laugh, cry, and even fall in love with the actors. Academics would probably scoff at this, but I think WGC's form of camming has already crossed that threshold and has now fully engaged many of its viewers. If that weren't true, then you wouldn't see the camfans throwing so much money at the girls in the form of tips."

   

"Absolutely," said Richard, "it's not unusual to see the more popular girls receive hundred-dollar tips during their cam shows. And even the guys without much money always seem to make some kind of a contribution, even if it's less than a dollar. Remember F.W. Woolworth, the tycoon of early drug stores? He once said: Financial empires can be built upon pennies."

The sound of a saxophone could remotely be heard as a band began to set up in the lounge area of the restaurant. Vito's lounge presented a diverse range of live music from jazz, soul, blues, and other genres.

"Cool, so they also have live music," said John.

"Yeah, five days a week, and there's never a cover charge. I love Seattle, half the stuff is free here. Even the buses are free in some areas to ease the flow of traffic."

There was a brief pause in the conversation while they listened to the musicians of the lounge, and then Richard continued.

 

"Anyway, I'm also impressed with how involved some camgirls become in decorating the sets for their shows. Not content to work from a plain bedroom, many will carefully stage a set with furniture, wall art, rugs, plants, and sophisticated lighting to create the most inviting environment possible. Did you notice how much they use those little white Christmas tree lights? They put strings of them everywhere -- on walls, behind gauzy drapes, and even on furniture."

"Oh God, those little white lights," groaned John. "They've got them all over the place, but then they are very effective at setting a mood."

 

"It's also interesting," said Richard, "that despite the informal appearance of the cam shows, there's often some very strategic planning going on. It seems many Internet websites give camgirls professional advice about everything they need -- cameras, lighting, financial strategies, how to structure a show, make an attractive set, and even how to protect their privacy."

   

"Well," said John, "might be what we're seeing here is a latter-day Gold Rush. In the same way that in 1849 people from all over the world came to California with picks and shovels in search of gold, young women are now flocking to camming sites with video cameras and laptop computers in search of financial reward. Who can blame them -- there're lots of opportunities out there."

Richard took a swallow from his beer and carefully composed his next question. "Okay, so if this camming thing is a little like the early days of silent movies, where do you see it going in the next ten or twenty years?"

John paused for a few seconds. "Hmm... the video journalism aspect seems to be the most fruitful, and camming will certainly branch out into other areas that don't involve nudity. Viewer interaction through a chat-window is very special, and it's something video journalism never offered. Letting viewers ask questions in real-time might enable traditional journalists to inject more relevance and spontaneity into their web shows."

"Absolutely right. And remember that personal publishing has been an expanding form of expression since the early days of the Internet, and it's sometimes taken the lead in the creation of new methods for journalism. During the early 1990s, people could only publish their short stories and poems on bulletin boards and primitive websites. But soon after that, personal publishing received a new extension when anyone could host their own personal blog. Then the major players of journalism soon realized the robust potential of the personal blog: political analysts no longer needed a newspaper column to publish their thoughts but could now deliver their ideas directly from their own website. If someone wants to keep up with Robert Reich's latest political opinions, they no longer have to find his column in the New York Times but can read him for free from his blogging website. To an extent, independent blogging has partially decentralized the journalism industry."

John continued. "And now with camming, it seems personal publishing has received its newest branch, the interactive video blog. In the future, we may see someone like Robert Reich host an interactive video session and while sitting in front of a video camera, respond in real-time to questions from a chat-window, just like the camgirls."

 

"Actually WorldsGreatCams has already created a sibling site that opens the door to interactive video blogs that are without a sexual nature. It's called CammingForAll.com and has the same features as WGC, but doesn't allow nudity or sexual content. And since there's no nudity, there's no age restriction for broadcasters or viewers."

  

"Funny you should mention CammingForAll," said John. "It occurred to me that developing musicians could also use a website like WGC to promote and sell their music. If a musician did a webcam show, they could divide it up into two phases. The first phase would be a chat session where they react to viewer comments and discuss their music. And that could later be followed by a performance segment where they might play a new song after viewers have first donated a preset amount of tips."

 

"Actually, I've already seen a camgirl do that to an extent on WGC," said Richard. "She's clothed when doing her shows and collects tips while performing her songs with voice and piano."

From the lounge area the band began to play another jazz standard, and it caught Richard's attention.

  

"Ah, I love this old jazz song, Just One Of Those Things. Wasn't it Billie Holiday who did it?"

"Uh-huh," said John. "She recorded it along with many other jazz greats. Actually, Cole Porter wrote the song in the 1930s. His music and lyrics are timeless."

Richard snickered. "And one of the lines in its lyrics might even relate to camming:  Just one of those bells that now and then rings."

  

"Yeah right -- like whenever the bell rings, a camgirl gets a tip."

 

There was a pause in the conversation as they listened to the rest of the song. Richard fiddled around with the cold uneaten remains of his food while he reflected on another camming topic. He posed a new question.

"Have you ever tried to do private messaging on WorldsGreatCams?"

"No, have you?"

"Yes," said Richard, "and that feature may evolve in a big way during the future. When you exchange private messages with a camgirl in real-time, you'll discover another unlikely thrill. Somehow I get the feeling... that in the future we may see different categories of camgirls, some of which may actually choose to have a smaller group of selected viewers. In that way, they could provide more extensive private messaging, and maintain greater control of their public-chat."

"Interesting, you said: selected. So you're maybe thinking of a closed chatroom that might involve some kind of membership? Anyway... I get what you say that private messaging is very engaging, but I'm still confused. How could a smaller group of viewers actually become a financial advantage?"

"I'm not exactly sure myself -- it's more of a hunch. But private messaging is much more than a conversation, at times it seems like a virtual date."

Vito's was a favorite place with the locals. In fact they would often serve free wine to customers who were waiting for a table because that line could become so long as the evening wore on. Time had slipped by, and they had been seated for quite a while since having finished their food.

"Uh-oh," said John, "our waitress is giving us the evil eye. Think we'd better pay the check and free up her table." He snickered. "Wouldn't want to make anyone angry here, you know."