From the title it is apparent that this is a sensitive topic, but an economically interesting one nonetheless. While I was searching for a mp3 version of Hacken Lee’s new hit <<花落誰家>> on emule, I noticed that quite a few porn sites use domain names that suggest they are free. With a not so happy mood I allowed my curiosity overpower me to seek out how on earth do these sites support themselves.

In case you are wondering, yes I can be pretty crazy at times. If not, how would I be able to keep my sanity without going to Karaoke or drink a beer even once?

At first to my surprise there is no obvious sign of advertisement; but as common sense would tell you there is nothing as free lunch in this world (not even salvation, which has been paid for on our behalf by Christ). The following are five types of “hidden” cost I have come up with:

1. Email Address Required
You would think no one would be stupid enough to fall into such obvious invitation to spam; I suppose there is enough people with their sex impulse over their heads to make this work. Also isn’t email verification easily beatable by services like mailinator or bugmenot?

2. Credit Card/Checking Account Number Required
This seems even more idiotic than 1., but considering that there are pay-to-view porn sites out there some potential viewers might think there is nothing to worry about.

3. Expensive Access Phone Call
This method is more ingenious. Potential viewers are directed to call a certain phone number for access password. While the porn site is free in its own right the call is not–the phone number provided is one that carries extremely high charges, for example an international call to Liechtenstein (don’t know where that is huh? Read Wikipedia’s entry on this tiny European country); I bet many potential viewers would just call without realization the hidden charges behind. Furthermore the provider of the phone service would try to hold potential viewers on the phone as long as possible–and no I did not actually make the call, I read about this on the website of a provider of such service, passwordbyphone.com.

4. Advertisement
Advertisement is there after all, though not exactly resembling the typical “Ads by Google”. This New York Times article discuss in some details how the porn industry pioneers web business; in particular,

Free sites profit by carrying links to other sites, which pay fractions of a cent each time a customer clicks through.

I guess this also explain why domain names that resemble famous websites are often porn sites.

5. Mal-ware?
There is still one final possibility–that the free porn site is actually a cover for various type of mal-ware. I would rather not having myself exposed to such dangers so I have firefox’s no-script plug-in on for the whole time.