In today's society, panties have become an item of great interest in themselves. Considered by some to be risqué, panties have caused the lingerie industry to take advantage of their erotic associations. Lingerie chains such as Victoria's Secret and Frederick's of Hollywood hold annual modeling shows to showcase new varieties of panties and other assorted lingerie.
A number of non-nude pornography websites survive through selling photo sets of women posing in panties and other lingerie.
In most modern cultures, panties have become a bit of a cultural icon associated with sexual mischief and a fun way of life, especially for teenage girls and women in their early twenties, who are more likely to enjoy them than women who grew up wearing granny panties. In Japan, panties (hadagi or pantei) are commonly depicted as adding a highly flirtatious, naughty element to a female's persona.
When a girl's skirt comes up high enough for her panties to be seen, it is called a 'panty shot'. Many websites on the internet make profits from selling the aforementioned kind of pornography or voyeurism.
