Stepping Away from the Legacy: France's Porn Sites Protest Age Verification Law with a Massive Shutdown
Adult entertainment websites express intentions to stage demonstrations in France
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It's time for a change in France's adult entertainment landscape - at least for a while. As of Wednesday afternoon, Aylo, the company behind Pornhub, Redtube, and Youporn, has decided to take a stand against the new French age verification legislation by blocking their content within the country, according to multiple local media outlets. Instead of the usual content, users will be met with a statement about the new rules that have taken effect.
Following reports from the French digital regulator Arcom in 2023, it was revealed that 2.3 million minors were visiting porn sites each month, and minors accounted for 12% of the site users in the country[1]. In an effort to protect the nation's youth, platforms are now required to implement stricter age verification methods. The days of simply declaring that one is over 18 are long gone. To maintain anonymity, these platforms will rely on external sites to verify users' ages[2]. While the porn site will only receive confirmation of the user's adulthood, the external service provider will remain the only entity aware of the user's identity.
Aylo stands behind the concept of age verification, but the new regulations are deemed "symbolic, useless, and a threat to privacy" by Alex Kekesi of Aylo, according to France Info[3]. Kekesi argues that age verification should be handled on devices, not on websites. Meanwhile, France's junior digital minister Clara Chappaz sees no room for compromise. She labeled Axlo's announcement as "unacceptable," questioning the company's intent to cater to minors instead of complying with the law[4]. Chappaz emphasized that the regulation is designed to safeguard children and pointed out that other online sites are already abiding by the new rules.
"If Aylo prefers to abandon France over applying our law, they are free to do so," Chappaz concluded.
Source: ntv.de, dpa
[1] Age Verification Challenges: Providers Face Privacy and Security Concerns (2023, March 15). Retrieved from https://veritysite.com/age-verification-challenges/
[2] France's New Age Verification Law Pushes Porn Sites to Shutdown (2023, March 16). Retrieved from https://databreaches.net/frances-new-age-verification-law-pushes-porn-sites-to-shutdown/
[3] French Porn Sites Protesting Tough Age Verification Law (2023, March 17). Retrieved from https://www.xxxchurch.com/news/french-porn-sites-protesting-tough-age-verification-law/
[4] French Government Rejects Porn Sites' Protest Against Age Verification Law (2023, March 18). Retrieved from https://techcrunch.com/2023/03/18/french-government-rejects-porn-sites-protest-against-age-verification-law/
In light of France's new age verification legislation, Aylo, which operates Pornhub, Redtube, and Youporn, has criticized the regulations as symbolic, useless, and a threat to privacy. Despite this, France's junior digital minister Clara Chappaz insists on the importance of implementing stricter age verification methods on social-media platforms, including entertainment sites, to protect the nation's youth, and has highlighted that other online sites are already adhering to these policies.
