Voyeurism is one of the biggests American pastimes of the 21st century. Whether it's sitting in the park or turning on a reality television show, people love to watch other people; modern technology allows them to watch without being watched back. Perhaps the purest distillation of voyeurism into a business model is the pay cam site. Users pay for the privilege to watch another person for a certain amount of time. It doesn't have to be adult, or even suggestive: pay cam businesses that display things as mundane as the everyday operations of a coffee shop exist and still turn a profit. If you set up your own pay cam site, you could make a tidy profit by reaching as many people as possible.

Decide on your business model either charge per minute or have a membership system. With the charge per minute system one-on-one chats you earn more pay for more work. You can also choose a constant voyeur-cam so you can solicit memberships, earning money from a loyal following. Pick your model based on how much work you're comfortable putting in: pay-per-minutes give you schedule flexibility, but voyeur cams are on all the time.

  • Voyeurism is one of the biggests American pastimes of the 21st century.
  • Pick your model based on how much work you're comfortable putting in: pay-per-minutes give you schedule flexibility, but voyeur cams are on all the time.

Register a URL for your pay cam business. Pick a snappy domain name that users will likely remember and recognise. Check whether the URL is available through a domain registration service such as GoDaddy or Register.com. If it's not available, go back to the drawing board or contact the domain owner to negotiate a purchase.

  • Register a URL for your pay cam business.

Install a payment system. Use a service---such as PayPal---to bill your customers. Request payment up front for pay-per-minute webcam chats. Offer recurring payments for membership sites.

Set up a studio. Designate a work room for one-on-one chats. Mount cameras throughout your studio for a voyeur cam. Make sure you have enough lighting to remain visible during operating hours, but avoid bright whites that will wash out the picture.

Get your webcam up and running. Pay for a third-party service for minimal fuss, but if you are willing to make an investment and perform maintenance, set up your own server in a storeroom of your studio; this will minimise long-term cost and ensure you are in control of when the site is down for maintenance.

TIP

Hire additional cam actors for a percentage of their earnings to reach more users at once. Create a button on your website to let users know when an actor is online. Set a schedule for when actors appear on camera and stick to it.

WARNING

Never give out personal information to your users. This is a good general rule for the Internet, but doubly true for the voyeuristic business of pay cams.