Some massage parlors are front organizations for prostitution and the term "massage parlor" has also become a euphemism for a brothel. The term "massage parlour" British English or "massage parlor" American English sometimes refers to a front for prostitution , an association popularized by the "Massage Scandals" of In the British Medical Association BMA inquired into the education and practice of massage practitioners in London, and found that prostitution was commonly associated with unskilled workers and debt, often working with forged qualifications.
In response, legitimate massage workers formed the Society of Trained Masseuses now known as the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy , with an emphasis on high academic standards and a medical model for massage training. Particularly where prostitution is illegal, massage parlors as well as saunas , spas or similar establishments may be fronts for places of prostitution. Illegal brothels disguised as massage parlors are common in many countries. Alternatively, the massages at certain massage parlors may have a "happy ending", meaning that the massage ends with the client receiving a sexual release.
In addition to a "happy ending" service, given the restrictions imposed upon most striptease venues, some erotic massage venues now also offer a service where the client can masturbate while watching an artist perform a striptease.
There is a grey area and ambiguity as to when an ordinary massage becomes sexual when it comes to individuals with sexual interests such as tripsophilia, tripsolagnophilia, partialism, autofetishism or organofact, who may feel that the massage of the entire body or any ordinary bodyparts unrelated to typical erogenous zones are associated with eroticism and sensuality.
Most types of massage, with the exception of some traditional Chinese medicine , are not regulated in China. Although illegal in China, some of the smaller massage parlors are sometimes linked to the sex industry and the government has taken a number of measures in recent times to curb this. In a nationwide crackdown known as the yellow sweep "Yellow" in Mandarin Chinese refers to sexual activities or pornographic content , limitations on the design and operation of massage parlors have been placed, going so far as requiring identification from customers who visit massage establishments late at night and logging their visits with the local police.
