Adult entertainment industry

The network of businesses and workers that produce, distribute, and sell sexually explicit entertainment, including films, online content, live performances, and related services.

Pornographic film: Film or video made primarily to depict sexually explicit activity for an adult audience. Studio productions remain a recognizable part of the industry, even as online video dominates distribution.
Pornographic actor: A performer who appears in sexually explicit films or videos. Performers supply the on-camera work at the center of many production businesses.
Strip club: A venue where performers provide erotic dance, typically for an audience paying for entry or services. Live erotic entertainment operates through physical venues rather than recorded-content distribution.
Obscenity: A legal category of material that may receive little or no protection under a jurisdiction's speech laws. Adult businesses must distinguish lawful explicit content from material legally classified as obscene.
Age verification: A process for establishing that a person meets an age requirement to access a service or content. Regulation increasingly requires adult-content services to prevent access by minors.
Subscription business model: A business model that charges recurring fees for continued access to a product or service. Recurring subscriptions provide creators and platforms with revenue beyond one-time sales.
Sex worker: A person who provides sexual services or sexually explicit performance in exchange for payment. Adult entertainment is one part of the wider, diverse sex-work economy.
Webcam model: A performer who broadcasts live online performances, often interacting with viewers for payment. Live streaming enables direct, real-time transactions between performers and customers.
Prostitution: The exchange of sexual acts for payment or other material consideration. It is distinct from producing or distributing explicit entertainment, though boundaries can overlap in practice.
Section 230: A provision of United States law that limits platform liability for many user-posted materials. Its scope affects platforms that host content uploaded by adult performers and users.

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