Pornhub Updates Algorithm; Creators Register Mixed Reactions

LOS ANGELES—Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, announced recently that it updated its content discovery and recommendation (surfacing) algorithm. Heralded by the company as an updated means to "build a loyal fanbase" for its creators, the reactions by some of the top earners on the platform have been negative.

"Your content will now be strategically served to viewers who are most likely to enjoy it, helping you build a loyal fanbase and increase your earnings," reads a blog post published for members of Pornhub's model program. "Plus, creators who upload regularly will see even more visibility boosts.

"With this update, we’re moving away from the old system where many creators saw a big surge in views right after uploading, only to experience a sharp drop-off soon after," the blog post reads. "Our updated algorithm is designed to give your videos a bigger window to surface in.

"Your content will continue to be recommended to interested viewers over time, rather than the first few hours or days."

What Aylo describes in the blog post is a longevity-focused recommendation algorithm built on recommending evergreen content consistently. Rather than a burst and fade of the content into the millions of videos that are already indexed on Pornhub, the new algorithm serves as a so-called "slow burn" to ensure sustained earnings.

This means that content will remain relevant and eligible for more recommendations beyond upload dates.

The algorithm is said to be built to support continuous relevance to the videos and content. But, a contingent of creators who are used to generating quick revenue and interactions in a short period are upset that it is allegedly impacting their ability to continue to earn stable and consistent revenues from popular video uploads.

"A majority of my earnings were from popular uploads getting featured, but with the new algorithm change seemingly killing the featured discovery page, I have suffered over a 50 percent drop in my earnings over the last two months," observed the immensely popular Pornhub content creator Jak Knife in a thread on X.

Knife and his partner, Elly Clutch, have a total of 1.3 billion views on the platform.

"Previously, I sustained the same earnings every month within a small margin for over a year," Knife added.

"[Pornhub] continually beckon creators to upload more and more, trying to incentivize us with promises of more earnings the more you upload [...] but are now seemingly punishing creators who have listened to them and worked hard to consistently upload and build an audience."

Clutch agreed in a similar post on X.

She noted, "This new Pornhub algorithm is seriously such a major snub to their top creators. There’s no reason for me to upload any more."

Knife ceded in his thread, "Don’t get me wrong, Pornhub has done a ton recently to improve their website and make it a safe and convenient place to consume and produce adult content, but a few of the changes are quickly alienating some of their top creators." 
 
Other creators have engaged with these threads sharing similar concerns. For example, performer Cami Strella said that she is now disincentivized to post on Pornhub.
 
"It’s actually disincentivized majority of us that were posting often/consistently to no longer do so," she said. "[I] posted my longest and first anal video (with a cumshot, mind you) and it’s my worst performing video. It is absolutely not increasing views nor are the right people seeing it—my income from [Pornhub] is the worst it’s been."
 
A spokesperson for Aylo defended the platform and its updates to the recommendation and discovery algorithm.
 
"[It's] worth noting that we have been in contact with any of the creators that have been vocal," the spokesperson told AVN. "And if anything, this update will stand to help models get their content matched with more expansive audiences than before through more sophisticated surfacing."
 
The spokesperson added, "Our goal with the recent update to our surfacing algorithm is to enhance the viewing experience by delivering more relevant and diverse content to our users. This change is designed not only to benefit users by providing them with content that resonates more closely with their preferences, but also to empower creators by connecting their work with the most receptive audiences.

"We understand that this may have impacted some creators. However, the newfound focus on regional and linguistic relevance ensures that many other creators are now seeing increased engagement from audiences that truly appreciate and connect with their content," the spokesperson concluded.
 
Other performers AVN has spoken with note that the updated aglorithm has impacted them neither positively nor negatively.
 
"My experience with Pornhub has been a little bit underwhelming, to say the least," trans creator Ria Bentley told AVN in an email.
 
She said, "I aim to upload one or two seven-minute condensed versions of my full-length scenes each month. Despite my consistency, my growth and subscribers seems to be stagnant, hovering around 13,000, and my model ranking stays in the 5,000s. Even my views are relatively modest, sitting around 4 million."
 
Asked whether the updated surfacing algorithm is impacting her, Bentley replied, "Everything seems the same from what I can tell."
 
Another creator interacting with Knife's intial thread, Scott Trainor, noted that he saw very minimal impact as a newer creator. Trainor explained, "I upload [four times] a week ... nothing changes. Unless it's featured, it's pretty dismal, but I'm still pretty unknown."
 
One other emerging performer shared on background that they are not seeing any immediate changes in either reach or revenue.