OnlyFans Reverses Ban on Adult Content After Backlash

Following widespread criticism and mockery, adult-oriented photo sharing site OnlyFans has dropped its controversial ban on sexually explicit material.

On Wednesday, the company tweeted that it has “suspended the planned 1 October policy change.”

Thanking the online community “for making your voices heard,” OnlyFans add that it had “secured assurances necessary to support our diverse creator community” and noted that it “stands for inclusion and we will continue to provide a home for all creators.”

The reversal comes mere days after the site announced that it would be unveiling a range of new regulations that would effectively make OnlyFans a pornography-free zone.

“In order to ensure the long-term sustainability of our platform, and the continue to host an inclusive community of creators and fans, we must evolve our content guidelines,” the company said at the time.

The company has largely relied on the services of large banks and payment processors like Mastercard and Visa, which the company had argued meant that it was forced to impose the ban.

However, critics pointed out that the ban may have also been a response to the new standards and requirements introduced by Mastercard that require strict proof of “clear, unambiguous documented consent” along with documentation proving the age and identity of content producers and sex workers.

Additionally, the move comes amid increasing pressure from conservative groups who are calling for credit card companies to flat-out stop working with adult websites. 

Since its creation in 2016, millions of creators had flocked to OnlyFans, attracted to its model as a safe alternative to traditional sex work that offered creators a degree of self-control and lower commissions than other options online. Sexual content in the form of videos and photos earned the most in terms of sales.

Content creators responded with alarm to the new guidelines and blasted the company for harming the same users who made the site popular.

“Many ppl think Sex Work isn’t work, but we know work is work, & should be valued as such & not diminished,” wrote one Twitter user who uses the handle Nancy Miami. “We put in a lot time & energy, sometimes spending years to build a brand just to get thrown off a platform for xyz reason. Its bulls**t, everyone knows it.”