Sex tech face incet o revenire la CES. Despre timp.

142

In 2019, Lora DiCarlo a creat un produs atat de inovator incat a castigat un premiu major la CES, cea mai mare conferinta tehnologica din lume. Ose – un dispozitiv de 290 de dolari conceput pentru a stimula atat clitorisul unei femei, cat si locul G pentru a atinge un „orgasm combinat” – a primit imediat premiul revocat de compania mama a CES, Consumer Technology Association (CTA), care l-a numit Ose „obscen. “

„Am fost ingrozit, pentru ca nu credem ca sanatatea sexuala este obscena – este sacra”, spune DiCarlo. „Sanatatea sexuala este sanatatea umana.”

Dupa un strigat public, CES a decis sa returneze premiul. Incomode.

Spectacolul pare sa fi invatat de la intreaga debacul jenant. La un an, CES permite companiilor de tehnologie sexuala, multe dintre ele fiind administrate de femei, sa isi prezinte produsele in mod procesual intr-una din sectiunile mai putin prestigioase ale conferintei din aceasta saptamana.

“Dupa CES 2019, CTA a inceput cateva conversatii importante pe plan intern si cu consilieri externi”, a declarat CTA intr-un comentariu oficial. “Am decis sa permitem includerea unor produse tehnologice sexuale bazate pe tehnologie la CES 2020 in mod incercat. Asa cum facem in fiecare an, vom urma politicile si procedurile noastre standard dupa spectacolul din acest an pentru a stabili urmatorii pasi.”

Aceasta recunoastere tacita ca tehnologia sexului nu mai poate fi ignorata face parte dintr-o recalibrare la CES pentru o mai mare incluziune pentru antreprenorii si participantii de sex feminin. Dar este, de asemenea, o miscare inteligenta de afaceri. Andrea Barrica, fost capitalist de risc si autor al revistei Sex (Tech): The Future of Sexness Wellness, a estimat ca Amazon vinde acum 60.000 de produse de sanatate sexuala care au adus in vanzari in jur de 800 de milioane de dolari in 2018. Dar structura publicitara tipica a internetului de azi – faceti clic pe un produs, recunoscand astfel un interes pentru acesta, apoi aveti inregistrari pentru asta produsul apare in paginile pe care le parcurgeti ulterior – nu sunt utilizate cu tehnologia de sex pe care compania o vinde. Asta in primul rand pentru ca majoritatea oamenilor ar fi jenat sa aiba un anunt vibrator, de exemplu, sa apara la locul de munca. Google si Facebook restrictioneaza sever si publicitatea pe acest front.

O companie proeminenta de sex sex la CES in acest an este Dame, cofondata de un sexolog si un inginer. Jucaria sa fina a fost prima autorizata pe Kickstarter, dar a suferit si problema imaginii industriei. In 2019, compania a dat in judecata MTA din New York pentru ca a respins campania publicitara, acuzand sexism.

„Lipsa de vizibilitate inseamna ca consumatorii nu stiu ca alte persoane folosesc aceste produse si nu stiu cat de larg este utilizarea jucariilor sexuale”, spune Janet Lieberman-Lu, cofondatorul Dame. „Prin urmare, se simt izolati in utilizarea lor. Amplifica intr-adevar rusinea si izolarea pe care o simt oamenii, in special femeile. ”

There’s evidence that sex tech is becoming increasingly legitimized and accepted, however. Venture capitalists are taking note: DiCarlo secured $2 million in the aftermath of the CES scandal, and Stratistics, a market research firm, estimates the industry could be worth $123 billion by 2026. The industry group Women in Sex and Tech now has more than 120 members.

DiCarlo says she has noticed a recent shift in attitude. “The reactions have been positive and encouraging,” she says. “Based on our reception this year, I do believe we’re gaining acceptance.”

Lieberman-Lu agrees. “I notice a lot more intention for inclusivity than I did even five years ago, and there’s a vocabulary we’ve all been armed with post-#MeToo that makes it easier to put what bothers us into words,” she says. “I think that also makes it easier to be an ally—I’ve had a lot more men stick up for me in conversation than I used to, or check in with me afterwards to see how a marginalizing comment made me feel.”

Cindy Gallop, the founder and CEO of Make Love Not Porn, a video-sharing platform, says that with sex tech, women are solving problems that have long been ignored or overlooked by men. But she argues that the CTA’s change of heart is too little, too late.

CES has been forced “kicking and screaming” to take women in sex tech seriously, she says.

Gallop says that she’s applied twice as a keynote speaker on sex tech. Instead, she received emails back saying “something along the lines of ‘I’m afraid this is not a topic that we want to see at CES.’”

Her experience speaks to a larger issue around women in tech that goes beyond the industry’s blind spot about sex products.

In 2017 and 2018, CES came under fire for not having a single female keynote speaker; the organizers went on to publish a blog post blaming this on the lack of women in leadership positions.

This year, CES has attempted to counter its reputation for sexism and misogyny with new dress codes designed to effectively eliminate the show’s “booth babes.” It has also partnered with Female Quotient, an “equality partner” that advocates for gender diversity in the workplace. And on Tuesday night, the CTA touted its female keynote speaker: Ivanka Trump, a senior advisor to the president.

Trump’s choice was supposed to assuage this problematic boys’ club image, but instead, it elicited fierce protest. On Tuesday night, DiCarlo published an open letter asking the CTA why Trump had been deemed an appropriate voice for women at tech’s biggest conference, simultaneously calling for more female speakers.

“Why book someone to keynote at CES, a hugely anticipated and exciting event for innovators and change makers, who has so little tech experience?” wrote DiCarlo, who also announced that her brand had won two more awards from the show this year. “The simple question keeps spinning around in my head, coupled with ‘What does the tech community actually want instead?’”

Editors note: We updated this story to include a comment from CTA.

Sex tech face incet o revenire la CES. Despre timp.

Populare

Cum alegi cel mai bun brad de Crăciun?

Afla cum iti poti lansa o mica afacere folosind un spatiu...

Top 10 cele mai supraevaluate filme din toate timpurile

10 regizori care au facut un film de groaza si au...

10 documentare care au schimbat perceptia publicului

Top 10 interviuri controversate cu celebritati din toate timpurile

Top 10 cele mai memorabile momente ale premiilor Oscar

Cum se schimba viata atunci cand intri in cercurile sociale ale...

10 povesti ciudate din lumea rap pe care sa le cunosti

10 secrete intunecate din lumea surprinzator de rasucita a K-Pop