Amateur porn-makers ramp up production during the pandemic

The coronavirus has changed a lot about how we live our lives. Restriction issues mean we drink, smoke and jog less. Mask issues mean we breathe in more of our own bad breath, and free time issues mean that our porn consumption is at record highs.

In March, TimesLIVE reported that adult entertainment website, Pornhub, had seen a surge in traffic as more and more people around the world started self-isolating. Corona-themed porn also started to trend, with Mzansi enthusiastically adopting this new genre — the volume of our 'Rona searches measured 42% higher than the global average. 

Of course, the more content people stream, the more content websites need to produce, which is where Pornhub's amateur division of more than 150,000 verified models comes in.

When countries around the world told their citizens to board up their windows, stay inside and keep an eye out for the coronavirus boogie man, the professional porn industry followed suit and closed shop. That left a lovely little gap for Pornhub's amateurs to exploit.

These amateurs are regular folk who upload content to the site habitually. They charge punters to view some of their videos, while others are free-to-watch with the creators making cash from ad revenue.

According to Pornhub’s analytics department, daily uploads from these amateurs have spiked by more than 30% compared to an average period before the pandemic. And those of us who enjoy a little nudity after supper couldn't be more grateful because without this fresh content we'd be stuck watching reruns of Debbie Does Dallas.