I recently learned about this thing called Dipsea – like, dipping a toe into the ocean to get a taste of something? Maybe I’m overthinking it.
At DipseaStories.com, I learned that Dipsea is a tech company, a story studio and also (claims to be) a platform for sexual wellbeing. The Dipsea app offers short audio stories designed to turn listeners on. It’s like phone sex (kinda), but in brief podcast format. As they say, it’s “an app for audio stories designed to turn women on.”
All women? I digress.
The company is very new, founded late last year. In November, they stated that: “Women needed more relatable, evolved erotic content. Better yet, it should be produced in audio. Why? Because audio lets our imaginations dream up their own personal versions of every story. Because it’s scene-setting and mood-making…”
…and for just $47.99, you can get access to all of Dipsea’s “sexy audio stories and wellness guides” for an entire year. The website doesn’t really give any idea about how much content that actually is or how any of it’s organized (or, where is comes from), but that’s not the point.
I Still Don’t Understand What Dipsea Is…
More digging led me to Elle.com, which explained that Dipsea stories range in time, perspective and mood. “You can listen to a story that’s five minutes long or 20 minutes long, one that features two women in an open relationship, a heterosexual couple, a woman and her ex-boyfriend, and so-on,” they explained.
Elle also explained that there are different categories of stories available via the app, things ranging from “hot and heavy” to ones meant for “date night pregame.” There’re also “relax and unwind” options – insert cheeky masturbation lady *winks* here. Further, Elle explained Dipsea’s pricing, saying that users can pay for a subscription that’s $5.99/month for a year ($71.88) or $8.99/month for month-to-month payment. These numbers don’t match up to info on the Dipsea site, but again – that’s not the point.
Here’s the actual point: According to TechCrunch, Dipsea has raised $5.5 million in a recent round of funding led by Bedrock Capital and Thrive Capital. This news comes “amid a notable explosion in interest and investment in audio content consumption and creation, as well as an uptick in AirPod sales.”
Why Might We Care About Lady Audio Erotica?
Basically, via code and clues, TechCrunch is telling us that Big Tech is gearing up to invest in quick, slick, private lady erotica — crafted here in a form they feel is the most women-friendly. (Again, all women? Again, I digress.)
TechCrunch wrote: “Since the onset of internet porn, there’s been a gaping hole in content crafted specifically for women. Most women use ‘mental framing’ to get turned on, meaning they imagine scenarios, often with detailed story-lines and characters to stimulate themselves, per a study by OMGYes and The Kinsey Institute. Dipsea’s sensorial audio storytelling sets the mood and sparks the listener’s imagination…”
I don’t think the author’s “gaping hole” joke was intentional. Or, if it was, props! But again… I digress.
They continued, explaining that Dipsea has “prioritized diversity of perspective, working with freelance writers of different backgrounds on various episodes, as well as consensuality, ensuring a form of verbal consent is worked into storylines.”
Fully acknowledging that my knowledge of this platform is very very thin, there are some things about Dipsea that immediately irked me. The generalization of all women — turning women on, erotica for women, etc. — coupled with buzz-worthy commitments to consent and diversity reads like barely-veiled hipster millennial speak. But none of this is as relevant or as important as the real key issue: funding.
If money indicates interest, then audio erotica is about to go big. And, go big in a way that has very softened stigma, which means possibly mitigating issues that usually come with erotic content.
Consider how you might utilize your skill set in this potential market. Delivering audio erotica, be it to ladies, “all women” or to anyone out there that’s interested, is something many in this industry can do seamlessly.
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Erika is a sex positive people watcher (and writer). Email her at erika@ynotcam.com.
The poor Weekend, he’s just trying to swim in something wetter than the ocean. (This song is what Dipsea *reminded* me of)
Image via Pexels.
