There are many social networks that exist today and each of them has a market, with an intention: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok… And new ones are emerging with new formats, with new audiences. This is the case of Only Fans, a social network that has not stopped making waves in recent years despite the fact that it has been available for more than five years. What is Only Fans and why is it always involved in controversy? What does it offer? For what do you use it?
It is common to hear about OnlyFans as a social network of nudity, with sexual content. But this is not its main idea beyond the uses given. It currently has tens of millions of registered users and its intention is to offer exclusive content in exchange for money. But below we explain everything you need to know about it.
What is OnlyFans
OnlyFans is a trendy social network that you have surely heard about in recent months. What is it for? It is a content creation platform where users can pay to access the content of one of the creators. We subscribe to the profile and pay a set monthly fee. In exchange, we receive exclusive content. Most of the channels are paid (although there are also many free ones) and we find all kinds of content: fitness accounts, recipe profiles and cooking tips, artists… And, in addition, content for adults: erotic content or sexual videos which are usual since nothing is censored here.
OnlyFans is not new. It was born in 2016 with a clear idea: to allow fans to get closer to their artists. Being a link between artists and followers in exchange for payment and with exclusive content that is not available on other networks such as Twitter or Instagram. Artists earn from each fan’s monthly subscription and fans earn content that only they have. But the idea of exchange changed two years after its creation with the change of director of the social network, betting on a more erotic approach but with greater popularity.
How does it work
We have two usage options: create or subscribe and become fans. We can create content for other people to pay a subscription to see us as long as we have something to contribute. In any chaos, it is necessary to be 18 years old to use the social network regardless of the role that we are going to choose when using it. In addition, registering is completely free whether we want to start being fans or if we want to create content.
To become a fan, you just have to create an account for free and explore which content creators there are and which interest us. Once we have chosen we will see that on the right side of the screen it indicates the price of the subscription to that account. It can be free or it can be paid, although we usually have to pay. In the case of the image, the price is twelve dollars a month (as you can see) and you have thirty days free of charge. Although there are also long-term subscriptions that make us get a 15% discount or a 35% discount compared to paying month by month.
Once we have paid or we have chosen a free channel or creator, we only have to add it to our lists or simply enter when we want to see the uploaded content. Whether they are looks with their corresponding labeled garments or any other type of image that interests you. In addition, fans can receive exclusive messages with photos and videos that they can unlock if they want and that have an extra cost beyond the subscription.
How do they make money? Money is earned through subscriptions that can vary in price and can be up to more than fifty dollars a month. In addition, there are other forms of monetization such as tips that fans can give us or exclusive messages that we can send to them and they will be the ones who decide whether they unlock or not, paying even more.
controversies
OnlyFans has more than 150 million users worldwide and its success grew during the confinement as the platform is continuously related to erotic material. There is no censorship or limitation on content, so creators can upload all kinds of videos or images and this has made the web always the center of controversy.
The New York Times included it in a report where it spoke of “the children of Pornhub” but also the BBC in 2020 analyzed how Twitter accounts with nude photos belong to minors who, in many cases, link to OnlyFans to the sale of them. Erotic content that has not been stopped despite a threat to ban it from October 1, 2021 that never happened.