Onlyfans, which has established a user base of over 130 million people because of its adult-oriented subscription fan pages, is prohibiting the one thing that most people come to the site for : pornography. As of October 1, the U.K.-based video subscription service will no longer allow “sexually explicit” content. Onlyfans stated that the decision was made in order to meet the demands of its banking and payment providers.
“We must change our content restrictions in order to preserve the platform’s long-term sustainability and to continue to host an inclusive community of creators and fans,” Onlyfans stated in a statement. Onlyfans claims that creators will be free to publish nudity-containing content as long as it is consistent with the company’s “Acceptable Use Policy.” Nudity is now permitted on the site, with the exception of content containing public nudity that was recorded in or aired from a country where public nudity is prohibited.
- Onlyfans Prelude
OnlyFans, which was founded by British businessman Tim Stokely in 2016, has grown in popularity in recent years, thanks in part to its hosting of adult performers’ films and images. Sex workers can charge their fans a fee to access “not safe for work” material on the platform.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Onlyfans grew in popularity as people who were stranded at home looked for amusement online and people who had lost their jobs turned to the platform as a method to make a living.
Onlyfans claims to have a user base of over 130 million people and a community of over 2 million content creators. According to an investor deck reported by Axios on Thursday, the company made $375 million in net revenue last year. Onlyfans anticipates revenue of $1.2 billion this year and $2.5 billion by 2022.
- The Payments Problem
After charges that the porn site aired movies featuring underage sex, rape, and revenge porn, payment processors Mastercard and Visa suspended connections with rival Pornhub last year. Pornhub refuted charges that it enables child sexual abuse material and updated its protocols to prevent unverified users from uploading.
Over 300 Onlyfans developers are said to make at least $1 million every year, while 16,000 are said to make at least $50,000. You’d think that with numbers like those, venture capitalists would be lining up to back Onlyfans. Many investors, according to Axios, are avoiding the stock because of concerns about its sexual content. Due to agreements with their institutional backers, several venture funds are forbidden from investing in sexual content websites.
Several banking organizations that provide payment gateway to Onlyfans had problems with paying out for pornographic content since it gave rise to several legal implications and restrictions. After several rounds of discussions, the banking organization decided to back out if Onlyfans did not take the necessary measures with regard to pornographic content and the policies surrounding it.
- Repercussions of Onlyfans’ Move
Many Onlyfans content providers, who rely on the service as a major source of income, are sure to be outraged by the change. Onlyfans is used by many adult entertainers to supplement their employment for other pornographic websites. Eliminating the content for which Onlyfans is most known could also have a negative influence on the company’s revenue.
Onlyfans has stated unequivocally that it is abandoning explicit content owing to just this type of pressure. While the company has recently released and pushed its OFTV app, an SFW alternative to the main Onlyfans site, and while many producers on the platform do not make sexually explicit videos, this is a huge blow to the sex work sector as well as the company itself. Affected creators were not informed in advance
- Onlyfans’ Future
Onlyfans’ ability to survive this shift in any recognizable shape is a big question. The decision to abandon their most profitable and committed sector of users and producers might poison the well, with others refusing to use a platform that failed to support others. Previously hesitant of investing in a sex-related commodity, investors may now be wary of paying to board a sinking ship. That $1 billion valuations could be a long way off.
- FansForX’s Solution – Cryptocurrency Payments
The pornographic industry has been slowly adopting cryptocurrency payments. Pornhub was the first to declare that they would start taking cryptocurrency payments in 2018. Fast forward to 2020, when Visa and Mastercard abandoned the platform; now the only means to pay for its premium subscription service are crypto payments and ACH bank transfers.
Similarly, FansForX, being a leading Onlyfans clone app integrated cryptocurrency payments on its platform even before Onlyfans could make the big announcement. Along with the integration of CcBill for its payment gateway, FansForX has enabled cryptocurrency payments.
This ingenious move by FansForX completely eliminates the need for banking organizations. Through its decentralized payment gateway, adult entertainers can now carry out hassle-free transactions with ease and without compromising on their content creation. FansForX’s innovative feature brings the best of both worlds for adult entertainers. Now that Onlyfans is shutting down the pornography part of their business, FansForX makes for an ideal business proposition.
