Culture

Porn turns virtual reality NSFW (pictures)

Porn is popular, but it's not as profitable as it used to be. The industry's solution: Use virtual reality to create experiences so mind-blowing that you'll pay for it.

Max Taves

Max writes about venture capitalism and startups while seeking out the new new thing to come out of Silicon Valley. He joined CNET News from The Wall Street Journal, where he contributed stories on commercial real estate, architecture, big data and more. He's also written for LA Weekly, Slate and American Lawyer Media's The Recorder, where he covered legal battles in Silicon Valley. Max holds degrees from Georgetown University and Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.

See full bio

Max Taves

Jan. 21, 2016 7:08 a.m. PT

1 of 4 Max Taves/CNET

Anna Lee's company, HoloFilm Productions, began shooting VR porn scenes last year, including ones with actress Brett Rossi. Virtual reality, Lee says, "is the next progression of everything [in] entertainment. It takes the viewer to another level.

Her company is among a half-dozen at this week's AVN Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas turning to VR as the future of porn.

2 of 4 Max Taves/CNET

Brett Rossi, a longtime porn actress and the ex-fiancee of TV star Charlie Sheen, says virtual reality porn is so realistic that it's a little "creepy...but hot creepy, not disgusting creepy."

3 of 4 Max Taves/CNET

Holodexxx is another virtual reality company at the porn industry's annual AVN Adult Entertainment Expo this week in Las Vegas. Holodexxx co-founder Craig Alguire says his company is merging porn with gaming.

4 of 4 Max Taves/CNET

Can VR get you to pay for online porn again? Daniel Abramovich, a director and producer with aptly named VRBangers, says yes. "You wear the headset, and you really feel like you're really there with the girl," he says.