This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »
The lack of a monetary transaction makes a massive difference. You could argue that the acts are much the same but the wider consequences are not. When something becomes profitable whilst remaining illicit then it firmly enters the sphere of organised crime and people tend to get hurt and abused on an industrial scale. Hookup culture can result in broken hearts, sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies but it rarely endangers people on anywhere near the same scale as prostitution. It is also far more likely to involve real free choice than prostitution.