In addition to newsreaders, the word "female anchor" now has a new meaning in China, but one that's not so positive.

With live streaming websites becoming phenomenally popular in China, young and pretty female live-streamers are often called nvzhubo, or "female anchors". Some make money by singing, dancing or just talking, and a number of them are making a windfall of profit by live-streaming pornographic performances to up to tens of thousands of viewers at a time.

Most of these websites are easily accessible to underage users.

On Huoshan Zhibo, or "Volcano Live," a young woman is asking for money for a seductive performance at 3:00 a.m. on March 1, according to an investigative report of China's official television network, CCTV.

"I'll put on more sexy underwear now, if you give me gifts. Give me a race car, and I'll change my dress," said the live-streamer in a suggestive way. Here, a race car is a 20-US-dollar reward paid by each viewer.

On another app, Tianxin Zhibo, or "Sweetheart Live," CCTV reports that a man is gathering viewers into a chat group in which a man and a woman live-stream a sexual performance in front of 39 viewers.

A "female anchor" says the apps are paying their anchors for erotic performances.

After a months-long investigation, CCTV listed dozens of apps involving sexual or erotic content, and has reported them to the authorities. It's a crime in China to profit from circulating pornography online.

Chinese authorities have launched several campaigns to crack down on such sites. But one app often has many proxy servers, making it impossible for authorities to shut down the sites only by filtering the apps.

An insider said on condition of anonymity that there are many companies available to help develop live-streaming apps. He said it costs around 200 US dollars for each app to create proxy servers, which help to mask their identities.

"It takes, at most, just a few months for an erotic live-streaming app to earn back their costs," the insider told CCTV.

Some of these apps are being promoted on a number of well-known Chinese news sites, such as Jinritoutiao, or "Today's Top News", leaving many users astonished by how far the line has been crossed, and how complete the industrial chain of erotic live streaming may have become.