By Peter Berton

PLAYA DEL REY, Calif. – In the traditional model of adult video production, studios hire performers. The studios deliver the resulting products to consumers via either a distribution chain involving distributors and retailers or, more directly, the internet. Studios bear all the expense and reap all the profits.

Now more than ever, performers wonder whether they could make more money by dealing with fans directly. According to one online resource, the answer is “yes.”

Vuier allows performers to upload self-produced content to a system that formats the material and then makes it available for sale through an interface on the performer’s website.

Vuier is “a free DIY [do it yourself] video-on-demand service for everyone,” said site co-founder Brick Rucker. “The easy-to-understand answer: It’s a video-sharing site that allows you to charge people to watch your video streams.”

YNOT: When did you start Vuier.com?

Brick Rucker: We started the service in 2010. Since then, it’s gone through several iterations to keep up with the most current online technology.

We started Vuier because there was no easy way for an everyday, regular person with good video content to sell their wares. Online video drives the internet. Whether adult content or YouTube content, it is now the motivating factor behind the bandwidth and storage wars. Everyone wants to stream video, and a lot of it.

For myself, when I was looking at the landscape, I saw a lot of frustration with folks out there putting their heart and soul into their video work and not seeing reasonable returns. Sure, they could post on tube sites and maybe see a small piece of the action, but that was not good enough, in my opinion.

We wanted to create a system that pays video content creators what they are worth. So we engineered a simple video-on-demand service anyone with a video can use — no technical expertise required.

How does it work?

It’s a very simple process. The video provider uploads the content, gives it a name and sets a price. Then he or she tells the fans where to find the video. Every time someone watches the video, the creator gets paid.

Fans simply push “play” on the video player, enter their credit card info and enjoy fan-supported video.

What does Vuier offer the adult industry, in particular?

We think we can offer the adult industry the best distribution deal on the planet, hands down. Anyone with a camera and an audience can start selling their videos in minutes. Producers control their own prices, and we return 100 percent of the profit created by their videos, not a revenue share. Payouts are not timed. Producers can redeem their income whenever their revenue reaches $150. We don’t lock anyone in with an exclusive contract — producers are allowed to come and go with their content as they see fit. All members are as anonymous as they choose to be, because all we ask for is an email address.

How many adult clients do you have now?

Currently, about half of the videos on our service are adult-related.

What sort of results have the producers achieved using your service?

Most people using our service in the adult capacity have been pleasantly surprised at the returns they are seeing when they blast [their product] out to their fans. The few users we have spoken to are really thankful to their fans for the support.

Do you see your service as an antidote to piracy?

Yes. We think it can be the same à la carte payment solution iTunes is famous for pioneering.