Back in January, AVN.com reported on the controversial decision by the owners of the Consumer Electronics Show to revoke an “innovation” award given to sex toy technology startup Lora DiCarlo, on the grounds that the Osé “personal massager” was “immoral, obscene, indecent, profane or not in keeping with CTA’s image.”
CTA is the Consumer Technology Association, the organization that stages the annual CES extravaganza.
Lora DiCarlo had already filed eight separate patents for the product, which is claimed could produce a “hands-free blended orgasm” by realistically simulating “all of the sensations of a human mouth, tongue, and fingers, for an experience that feels just like a real partner.”
Apparently, CTA agreed, handing Lora DiCarlo an award for innovation in robotics—only to quickly yank the award away.
But now, four months later, the electronics group has changed its mind again, giving Lora DiCarlo—founded in 2017 by United States Navy veteran Lora Haddock—the innovation award after all.
The initial decision to pull the award for the Osé was always a curious one. In 2016, the sex toy maker OhMiBod won a CES award in the “Digital Health and Fitness Product” category, demonstrating that giving awards to sexually oriented products was not unprecedented, according to Fortune magazine.
Haddock also noted, in an open letter in January, that CES has previously featured sex dolls for male use, and virtual reality porn typically aimed at male consumers. She questioned why a product designed to be used for sexual pleasure by women was considered “immoral” by the show.
But CES has now attempted to rectify what the group now says was a poor decision in the case of the Osé.
“CTA did not handle this award properly,” Jean Foster, a senior vice president of the organization, told Fortune. “This prompted some important conversations internally and with external advisors and we look forward to taking these learnings to continue to improve the show.”
Haddock said in a statement that the on-again, off-again saga of the award “highlights the need for meaningful changes and we are hopeful that our small company can continue to contribute meaningful progress toward making CES inclusive for all."
Photo by LoraDiCarlo.com
