IsLive

What the platform is

IsLive is a Dutch pay-per-minute cam site paid in credits. Visitors browse the live models for free, then spend credits by the minute to watch, chat one on one or take a model into a VIP show. The home page says "IsLive is een merk van Sirius Media B.V. en valt onder de Nederlandse wetgeving", that IsLive is a brand of Sirius Media B.V. and falls under Dutch law, and the About page names Sirius Media B.V. as the operator of the site.

It serves a Dutch-speaking market first. The same brand runs on islive.com, islive.nl and islive.be, with the interface in Dutch and an English version on the .nl domain. The home page says most of the women come from the Netherlands and Belgium, so viewers simply speak Dutch with them, and the Belgian domain says its models speak both Dutch and French. Signing up is free with an email address, and the home page invites visitors to make an account "binnen 30 seconden" and receive personal offers. The About page claims more than 21,500 active models, which is the site's own figure.

What you get and how the money works

The home page sets out the flow in four steps: sign up free with your email address, buy credits (the bigger the bundle, the bigger the discount), pick a model who is live and watch for a while, and if it clicks, start a chat or take her into a VIP show. Credits run by the minute. When you stop, the charging stops, and what you do not use stays on your account for next time. There is no subscription: the FAQ answers the question whether you are tied to one with "Nee. Je koopt losse credits wanneer jij dat wilt", no, you buy single credits whenever you want, and the cost section adds that nothing is ever charged automatically.

The show formats, as the site words them:

• Watching along. You can look in on a live model's room first, which is the cheapest paid mode.
• Chat. In a sex chat you message her while you watch her live, and she reads along, answers and adapts the show. In an ordinary chat other visitors can chat with her too.
• VIP show. In a VIP show nobody else can chat with the model and everything revolves around you. The English page shows this from the lobby: a model in one is marked "I'm in a VIP 1-1 Show", and others show "I'm on a break, will be back soon!".
• Your own camera. You can switch on your own camera if you want her to see you, and the site says your camera is off by default, so staying anonymous works just as well.
• Requests and tips. The home page tells viewers to ask what they want to see and tip for "dat beetje extra", that little bit extra. Many models have a tip menu listing actions, and the page says the menu shows exactly what each one costs.
• Toy shows. Some models have a toy that reacts to a tip. The viewer chooses how long it runs: 2, 5, 10, 20, 30 or 60 seconds. There is a Toys category for these shows.
• Favorites and messages. A model can be saved as a favorite, with a notice as soon as she is live again. A model who is offline can be sent a message, which she reads when she logs in.

The Belgian domain adds group shows, in which several viewers watch a model together, and sessions for couples watching as a pair. It also names private shows with striptease and fetish models for role play and specific clothing. The IsLive.nl page describes video calling with an amateur model, an erotic chat and a session with an experienced BDSM mistress, and lists MILFs, BDSM, international models and curvy women as its main kinds of show. It says many models also offer sessions with sound. The site frames all of this as live, not recorded: "Een video is al gebeurd. Livesex gebeurt nu", a video has already happened, live sex happens now.

The roster is organized by tabs, and these tabs answer most of the category questions a reader might arrive with. The .com home and ebony pages carry the tabs Alle, Dik, Slank, Ebony and Toys, among others, and the English Dutch-ladies page shows All, New, Ebony, SM, MILF, Big Boobs and Toy. Together those cover ebony models, heavier-figure models (the Dutch tab "Dik"), mature models (the MILF tab), the site's big-breast tab, SM and fetish, and the interactive toy shows. The home page describes the range itself as housewives who come online during the day, women with curves and slim women, and the Belgian page says its filters sort by age, hair color, body type and special interests. Model tiles carry a language tag such as nl or en, and a "Meer laden" button loads more.

The figures and claims on the site

• Per-minute rates. The home page's cost section lists: Meekijken (watching along) 60 credits per minute, Chatten een op een (one-on-one chat) 60 credits per minute, and VIP-show 240 credits per minute. Tips and tip-menu actions are paid separately in credits.
• Cost in euros. The FAQ on IsLive.nl says visitors can view the models in the overview for free, but a show costs money, and once you create an account it costs 70 cents per minute. It adds that there is no way to try webcam sex for free.
• Packages. The home page says larger credit bundles carry a larger discount. It gives no bundle sizes.
• Payment. iDEAL / Wero, Bancontact, credit card or Paysafecard, according to the home page, which adds that you can also dial in anonymously by phone if you want no bank involved at all.
• Billing descriptor. The home page says the bank statement shows Sirius Media B.V., not the name of the site, and the About page says the same for bank and credit card statements.
• Founded. The About page says "al sinds 1990" and shows "1990 opgericht".
• Models. "21.500+ actieve modellen", the site's claim, and "24/7 live, altijd".
• Operator. Sirius Media B.V., registered with the Kamer van Koophandel under number 50227505, at De Boelelaan 7, 4th floor, 1083 HJ Amsterdam, as stated on the About pages of the .com and .be domains.
• Screening. The site says every model is checked for identity and age before going live, and the trust strip reads "18+ Geverifieerd, Alle modellen handmatig gescreend", with SSL, Dutch law and 7-day Dutch support listed beside it.
• Other. Footer links on the .nl English page include an Affiliate Program and a Become a Model link.

Who it suits and who it does not

IsLive suits a Dutch or Belgian viewer who wants a paid, interactive cam experience in Dutch (or French on the Belgian domain), with posted per-minute rates, tip menus that show prices in advance and toys that respond to tips. The tab structure helps a viewer who already knows the niche, whether that is ebony, mature, big-breast, SM or toy shows. Someone who dislikes subscriptions will like that credits are bought singly, never charged automatically and kept on the account when unused, and someone who wants discretion gets a neutral descriptor and a phone dial-in option.

It does not suit a viewer looking for free cams. The FAQ is plain that there is no free way to try a show, and even watching along costs 60 credits a minute. A VIP show runs at 240 credits a minute against 60 for a chat, so a long private evening adds up quickly.