Adult cam site CamSoda will offer ‘virtual intercourse with real people’ using sex dolls and VR

Sex and technology make for strange, if frequent, bedfellows. The latest example comes from adult webcam site CamSoda, which from today is using VR headsets and internet-connected sex toys to offer what it calls “virtual intercourse with real people” (or VIRP for short).

It works like this. Performers on the site will use Wi-Fi-enabled vibrators that connect to “male masturbators” owned by paying viewers. Whatever happens to the vibrator sensation-wise is sent to the masturbator as “pressure data,” supposedly mimicking the feel of intercourse. This is established technology (it’s called teledildonics) and not a new offering for CamSoda. But the company is also adding the option of putting these masturbators inside life-size sex dolls and strapping themselves into virtual reality headsets. It’s the combination of all these elements, claims CamSoda VP Daryn Parker in a press statement, that leads to the “ultimate sensory experience, one that mimics real-life interaction.”

Well, perhaps. It’s doubtful for a start how many people will actually go for the full VIRP experience, considering that the sex doll-maker CamSoda has partnered with, RealDoll, sells its wares for thousands of dollars. Users will also need to own the only supported male masturbator (the $99 LoveSense Max) and a VR headset (although even a cheap device like Google Cardboard will do the trick).

The “ultimate sensory experience,” according to CamSoda. Image: CamSoda
Speaking to The Verge over email, Parker admits that the sex dolls and VR are optional and that only “approximately” 30 percent of the company’s 300-odd webcam models have the required Wi-Fi enabled vibrator. But, he says, CamSoda users definitely want to try this sort of experience, and it can be as cheap as just the price of the male masturbator. “We know there is an audience because we hear it from our users and models. They are seeking ways to get closer and have more physical interaction,” says Parker. “We’ve had a number of employees, beta users, and models try out the experience. All of them were blown away by the interactive capabilities""