I am curious about the impact of internet review boards on this industry.  It seems with services like TER the cost of identifying trustworth providers is much lower.  Without it the customer has no way of knowing if he should trust the provider. She may not provide any services or not the ones he's interested in. Consequently, it seems guys would be more reluctant to partipate.  Providers also have more incentive to provide high quality service as the reviews serve as a form of marketing. To those of you with a long history in the hobby, both providers and customers. with the advent of the internet has:

THe popularity of the industry increased?
The quality of the services provided by providers increased?
The type of customer seeking services changed?

I've been hobbying for over 35 years and the Internet has changed it completely.  While I could go on at length (and have in previous posts), the principal changes I see are:

1.  What economists call "barriers to entry" have changed.  This is not a bad pun.  Before the Internet, a woman had to walk the streets, work out of a brothel or a massage parlor, or work for an agency.  To some extent, she could work off a classified ad.  But there was huge risk from LE since there was no really reliable screening process.  The Internet has made is much much easier for a whole category of women to enter the business who never would have been in it before -- the women you see on these boards who are intelligent, well-balanced normal people working for a living.

2.  The quality of the relationship between the provider and hobbyist has changed radically.  Before the Internet, it was completely anonymous. You might see a provider in a brothel, really hit it off with her, see her as a regular for 6 or 8 months and then poof! She's gone and you have no way of contacting her and vice versa.  Additionally, there was no accountability on either side.  Now, even tho there's the anonymity that "handles" provide, we at least have those identities, and through them there is some of the continuity and accountability that people have in civilian relationships.

3.  There's a community.  This community, in my view, is outstanding -- it's warm, welcoming, intelligent, funny, diversified.  We discuss things that were never discussed before, at all, anywhere.  

4.  The quality of service is better.  There's competition.

Some enterprising young grad students in economics and sociology really ought to do a Ph.D. thesis on this topic.  It's fascinating and it changes all the time.  For the better.

-- Modified on 7/15/2004 8:01:18 PM

The "Dean" took the words right out of my word program...
I just deleted much of what you just wrote but not written as succinctly as you.

The world's oldest profession has certainly come along way for the better.

Cheers!

The percentage of men who seek out escorts by using sites like this appear to be a small percentage of the total number of men seeking escort services.  It is probaly a good bet that more money is wasted on strip shows, phone sex lines and phony websites than is spent on all high caliber providers.
    Time will probaly change things somewhat concerning membership in sites like TER, the site simplifies life, especially for all of us who have little time to waste.  I went for several years tolerating the hit and miss nature of seeking an escort from the local phone book or newspaper ads (where that was allowed).  I had big issues with the uncertainty because of having little time to hobby when I am travelling on business.  I had seen TER ads for about 2-3 years and figured that it was just another ripoff website like many that I had avoided.  One night last year, after a very frustrating encounter with a ripoff escort, I was looking at ads on the web, saw one hot looking woman's link to TER and checked it out.  The woman turned out to be a ripoff (amazes me to this day why she kept the link up), but I have not looked back.  I kick myself often for not joining TER a couple of years ago, the site saves a lot of time and greatly increases the probability that I will enjoy my visits.

-- Modified on 7/15/2004 6:45:50 PM

Having been a provider for many years, I have seen a lot of changes. I think that most have been for the best all the way around.

There is much more communication between clients and providers, which I think makes, for a more personal interaction for both.

I have met some great people on these boards, (ladies and gents) and have few more I would love to meet. TER has had a very positive effect on this business, for me.

Just my 3 cents worth,

Kelly~

This site provided a way to get the sense of the aforementioned diverse and intelligent community before venturing in to the water… while providing a much more personal experience that a newspaper or telephone book. A community of peers and cohorts instead of being on the road wondering about calling some faceless phone number with out council or company.

So blame TER for my transgressions!  I read postings, reviews, and the often intelligent comments on this board and realized that hobbying was not something relegated to the street corner and strip clubs of high end hookers.  It consists of men and women who think deeply about the hobby, enjoy it and also struggle a bit with the obvious mixed feelings it can raise.  I have met great women all through TER.  Otherwise, I would have stood at the sidelines.  Oh yeah, Sedona's postings made me feel that the women I would meet would perhaps turn out to be very special. Geez, I got to make it out to SD.

have helped form a sense of community. This is one of TER's greatest contributions to the hobby.

    FR.

I, for one, spent a lot of time on TER researching, educating myself before jumping in.
Had it not been for TER, I would not have become active.

I would not have become aquainted with the great people on here, and for sure, would not have met several of the beautiful ladies whom I now consider dear friends.

Just my opinion...
B

I echo this, word for word, start to finish, even the part about reading Sedona's posts and needing to get to SD.

- thank you! I feel the same - can you guys get here fast enough?! Would love it!
(except next week..going on vacation..)

TER Rocks...it not only let's the hobbyist know what kind of service he can expect but it can make or break a providers business. Without TER there would be alot more rip-offs and mediocre service. TER is genius! And great for both hobbyist and providers. Thank-you TER.

Yes you do.  I was fortunate to spend some time with Sedona recently (my reveiw should be posted by now).  She is awesome in many ways.  Thank you Sedona!

be careful what you wish for--as soon as that enterprising grad student publishes her paper, look for local LE and John Ashcroft's DOJ to come down on the hobby as if we were all a bunch of terrorists.