LITTLE ROCK—Arkansas is now the latest U.S. state to be geo-blocked by adult tube website Pornhub in protest of an age verification law that enters force on August 1, 2023. A Republican-leaning stronghold, Arkansas is also the latest state to fall to an age verification law that was implemented without input from the adult entertainment industry to ensure equitability.
A spokesperson for MindGeek confirmed to AVN that the company implemented the geo-block on Friday, July 28, ahead of the effective date of Senate Bill (SB) 66. Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the former press secretary for then-President Donald Trump, signed the bill into law with the effective date set about 90 days from May 1. With a population of about 3 million people, the Pornhub geo-block isn’t being well received by Arkansas voters who are upset with “nanny-state” Republicans, and is lauded by far-right religious conservatives.
SB 66, now Act 612 officially, is a carbon copy of the age verification measures implemented in Utah, Virginia and Mississipi—three other states MindGeek leadership chose to geo-block due to the broad and unclear provisions implemented by the respective laws.
According to the text of the bill, government identification or a commercially-available solution must be implemented in order for adults of legal age to access age-restricted material. Enforcement is unclear and it isn’t likely that all adult sites will comply with the law. Pornhub is doing so by withdrawing from the market altogether. Other websites, like xHamster, have placed age verification measures in place but at great cost to web traffic and potential ad-share to local adult content creators in the state of Arkansas. AVN reported on age verification technology in a recent analysis considering the benefits and shortcomings of artificial intelligence and tech that estimates age through the use of biometric-assisted algorithms. Penalties for violators include a fine and other potential civil action. Some states created new rights of legal action for these laws.
Sanders, a far-right governor, also signed into law an age verification measure restricting access for minors under 18 years of age from accessing social media websites without parental consent.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas filed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit filed against the Arkansas state officials to prevent the so-called Social Media Safety Act from being implemented. AVN reported on this particular case, NetChoice LLC v. Tim Griffin, which parallels adult industry-related litigation looking to block age verification laws for pornography websites in Utah and Louisiana.
Adult industry trade organization the Free Speech Coalition is the leading plaintiff in the two federal lawsuits against the governments of Utah and Louisiana. Both lawsuits argue that the age verification laws violate the U.S. Constitution, including the First and Fourteenth Amendments. Case law, dating back to the landmark decision in Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union, shows that age restrictions on web content that are otherwise protected by the First Amendment infringe on an adult’s ability to openly express themselves through sexual speech, art and culture. Reno rendered most of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 as unconstitutional and retained the controversial safe harbor for web platforms to be self-regulated, which is found in Section 230.
A case in 2016, heard in neighboring Louisiana, adds context to online age verification mandates potentially violating the protected freedoms of expression for adults, including sexual speech. In the case of Garden District Book Shop et al v. James D. Caldwell et al, counsel for the plaintiffs who include the ACLU chapter in Louisiana, was able to render an age verification law that tried to block minors from age-restricted content under risk of fines and criminal conviction a clear and flagrant violation of the First Amendment. Previously, AVN asked a spokesperson for the Free Speech Coalition, director of public affairs Mike Stabile, whether the group was looking at litigation in other states. Stabile confirmed that they are considering these types of interventions.
An assessment of state laws indicates that the next state to potentially face a geo-block from the MindGeek family of adult brands is definitely Texas. Texas lawmakers sent an age verification bill that also mandates public health warnings posted to porn sites, like those on cigarette or e-cigarette websites, to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. That law enters force on September 1, making the Lone Star state the largest jurisdiction in the United States—nearly 30 million people—to possible incur such a blackout.
