Teledildonics (also known as cyberdildonics) is the name coined for virtual sex encounters using Computer network electronic Sex toy to mimic and extend human sexual interaction. The term became known after technology critic and writer Howard Rheingold used it in his 1991 book Virtual Reality.[Stein, Joel "Will cybersex be better than real sex?" Time magazine, June 19, 2000. Retrieved July 23, 2008]
Background
Teledildonics is commonly used to describe Bluetooth-enabled sex toys, many of which have entered the market in the last decade. As well as being open to a remote connection for control, some toys can also be connected with corresponding devices to deliver synchronized movements between couples and remote partners. Teledildonics have also been used within the
Sex industry to create 'immersive'
webcam shows, whereby users control the vibrations of the
Webcam model sex toy.
Some media outlets have reported on 'teldildonic' technology used by long-distance couples in order to maintain sexual relations.
As well as offering remote functions, many teledildonic toys can be synchronized with pornography movies. Synchronization of porn with teledildonic or Bluetooth toys actions are controlled by means of a previously-written script. A report in 2008 suggested that teledildonics, along with text and email and webcams, can be used to "Foreplay to fever pitch during the working day" as a prelude to sex with a human during the evening hours.
History
The term was coined as early as 1975 by
Ted Nelson in his book
Computer Lib/Dream Machines. The idea of virtual sex has been prominent in literature, fiction and popular culture, and promoters of these devices have claimed since the 1980s they are the "next big thing" in
cybersex technology.
[Grossman, Anna Jane "Single, white with dildo." Salon, July 23, 2008. Retrieved July 23, 2008] At the time Howard Rhinegold started using this term in 1990s, there were already many enthusiasts seeking to explore the power of technology, sex and intimacy. A report in the
Chicago Tribune in 1993 suggested that teledildonics was "the virtual-reality technology that may one day allow people wearing special
Haptic suit, headgear and gloves to engage in tactile sexual relations from separate, remote locations via computers connected to phone lines."
It was the same year that the Cyber-SM suit was released by
Stahl Stenslie, which featured on the cover of
FutureSex, a 1990s San Francisco–based magazine that focused on the emergence of teledildonics.
Some products have been shown at the Museum of Sex in New York City
and there was an exhibition about Stensile's Cyber-SM suit in 2016.
The responses to teledildonics have been mixed; however, the dominant concern has centered on the separation of personal intimacy and embodied presence. In the words of one early text on the subject:
Patent issues
In the past, companies experimenting in the field have been hit with patent lawsuits.
[
] In particular, U.S. Patent No. 6,368,268 titled "Method and device for interactive virtual control of sexual aids using digital computer networks"
effectively claimed priority over the entire field of controlling sex toys via the Internet.
At the 2016 South by Southwest Festival, virtual reality entrepreneur
Ela Darling asserted that patent holders were
Patent troll the production of teledildonic technology.
The patent expired in August 2018, lowering the barrier of entry to the field.
See also
Further reading
External links
