Shared between eroticism and pornography, OnlyFans and MYM are used by hundreds of millions of people. From simple amateur photos to professional videos, you can find everything on these platforms. A true underground economy. Midi Libre investigated the world of adult platforms, considered the antechamber of prostitution.
It is not uncommon to find profiles on social networks promoting platforms dedicated to adult content. Students, employees… There is no typical profile of creators or subscribers. Selling photos or videos of your body is becoming an increasingly common practice and represents a real source of income. First of all, you need to understand the concept of these platforms.
What is OnlyFans and MYM?
“OnlyFans is the 18+ subscription platform that empowers creators to realize their full potential, monetize their content, and develop authentic connections with their fans.”
MYM, acronym for Me. You. More, saw the light of day three years later, in 2019. It is a French platform, launched by two Lyonnais. “MYM gives power back to creators by allowing them to make a living from their passion and generate recurring income. On the user side, they access quality content that they really need, via paid subscriptions to learn, entertain and interact.”
Some figures
In less than ten years, these new social networks have become essential on the web. The French platform MYM has nearly 3 million daily visits. As for OnlyFans, millions of Internet users have been present on the subscription platform since its launch in 2016.
According to the figures communicated by OnlyFans, there are more than 3 million creator accounts and more than 220 million fan accounts in 2024. But behind this popularity which continues to grow, hides a very lucrative business, since more than $15 billion in earnings has accrued to creators since 2016.
These two platforms host all types of creators: from athletes to musicians, including cooks and gamers. But it is adult content that generates a real online economy.
Hundreds and thousands of euros per month
Raphaël, an 18-year-old Parisian, launched on MYM and OnlyFans the week after he came of age. Employed on a permanent contract in sales for four months, he uses these platforms to finance a life project that really motivates him: music. “With my salary alone it’s complicated, it requires a certain amount of financing, so I need a little extra.”
On average, I make between 500 and 600 euros per month.
He anonymously posts erotic videos and photos of himself as well as pornographic content that he films with women. What earns him the most are customer orders, for which he establishes a price based on demand.
“If I’m really into it, the most I’ve done is almost 2,000 euros in one month”he confides, specifying that to generate this sum, he devoted between 30 minutes and 1 hour of his time per day. “Otherwise on average I make between 500 and 600 euros per month.”
To recruit his clients, Raphaël uses other platforms such as Reddit. Operating in the form of sections, this American discussion site is a breeding ground for pornographic content. “You post in the corresponding categories, while sharing your links leading to paid platforms and after a while you accumulate a kind of fan base. The content must be softer otherwise there is no point in going and buying behind.”
Diverted from their initial function, many social networks such as X (formerly Twitter), Snapchat or Telegram are also used by MYM or OnlyFans content creators to contact potential customers.
“There is money to be made”
But like any activity that generates money, it attracts the desire of many people, sometimes with bad intentions. Julie*, 25 years old, lives in Montpellier and is a sex worker. The young woman is also present on the platforms and explains that there is a real commercial strategy behind what she considers to be a “business”.
“I take erotic photos, lingerie, it can be censored nudes. You have to make men want it, to then be able to make them pay by sending them direct messages (called private media). I have the cheapest subscription , at around 6 euros per month, I also do a promo code for the first month. They enter their credit card and after that, when it comes to private media, they tend to have a bit of an easy click. You have to put a photo. out of three which is free, accessible to all world, and for others it is necessary to be a subscriber”she emphasizes.
We don't realize it from an outside point of view, but there is a real business.
“There are guys who claim to be managers of girls on the platforms. There was one who talked to me and at the time, he sold me a bit of a dream. 'You know, there are girls they make 4,000 euros…' But in reality, they take 50% from you, you have a kind of contract and he has all the rights to your photos”continues Julie. If she confides not to give herself “thoroughly” in the virtual world, the Montpellier woman affirms that the money generated is a significant resource.
“Today, I can make a little more than 100 euros per month. In October, I received 160, but when I worked with the 'manager', I received up to 300, it was the maximum In reality, it was a little more than 600 euros, but with the 50% commission… I have friends who told me to give it a go, there's a lot. the money to be made. It's not how I earn my living personally, but it gives me a little extra money. You don't realize it from the outside, but there's a real business. In the industry, you should know that there are many who started with the virtual world, whether it was cams (live videos) or the MYM and OnlyFans platforms. They then moved towards the real world.she says.
“It’s the amateur side that I prefer”
While the porn industry seems to be experiencing an upheaval with the arrival of these platforms favored by new technologies and social networks, subscribers are looking for “curiosity” and a new style of porn, explains Grégory, a former subscriber to these platforms contacted by Midi Libre. “The content is often amateurish and that’s what I prefer compared to big storylines.”
The thirty-year-old says he had several subscriptions, over several months, but never at the same time. “I rarely paid a lot. There are often promotional codes that designers put on their social networks for example. That’s when I subscribe”he adds.
But he also points the finger at this commercial strategy put in place. “There are sometimes photos or videos that are sent to you privately, at prices that are much too high. Sometimes 30 euros or even 100 euros for a single piece of media.”
Despite these shortcomings, the search for proximity while maintaining a certain distance, the very essence of Onlyfans, MYM and the others, generates an economy which continues to grow and gain momentum. To the detriment of the privacy of the individual which is increasingly exposed.
