French justice threatens to block, on July 7, pornographic sites that do not impose real age verification of visitors.
While porn sites may soon be blocked if they do not control the age of Internet users, the global giant of the sector Mindgeek, which notably owns Youporn and Pornhub, does not exclude making its video platforms inaccessible in the country. , according to an executive of its new shareholder.
The Canadian fund Ethical Capital Partners (ECP) recently got hold of the group and must face the threat of French justice to block its sites on July 7, in application of a 2020 law which imposes a real verification on it. of the age of the visitors, and no longer a simple declaration of majority.
“In all the jurisdictions where we operate, we respect the law”, assures AFP lawyer Solomon Friedman, specialist in regulatory issues and partner of the fund. He was also ordained a rabbi in Israel in 2005.
Identity verification on smartphones
In the United States, where some states have established restrictions, Mindgeek has so far taken various positions. In Louisiana, it has complied with the legal requirement to implement age verification that uses the digital identity provided by the administration. But, in Utah, it preferred to shut down rather than have to process personal information directly.
“Suddenly, the use of VPNs (software to change the origin of one’s connection) exploded”, reports Solomon Friedman, who does not wish for the moment to “speculate” on what his decision will be in France.
To protect minors, the only “effective” solution, he says, is identity verification directly on smartphones, “which could be implemented tomorrow” if industry, phone manufacturers and regulators agree. . He also says he is ready to meet the French Minister Delegate for Digital, Jean-Noël Barrot, who issued an invitation in March and has since proposed a bill to strengthen the blocking powers of the digital regulator.
Ottawa-based ECP bought 100% of Mindgeek, a porn empire founded in 2004, in March. The group’s headquarters are in Luxembourg but its main offices are in Montreal.
Eight million videos taken down
The company had been looking to sell itself since the publication at the end of 2020 of a survey by the New York Times highlighting the presence on its platforms of videos of rape, pedophilia and abusive pornography. Its leaders left in the summer of 2022. Despite these serious accusations, Solomon Friedman evokes “an extraordinary investment opportunity”.
The fund team brings together two lawyers, a former police officer, a crisis communication expert and an Italian investor who made his fortune in the legal sale of cannabis. The other investors remain discreet.
According to Solomon Friedman, Mindgeek has changed since the “allegations” of the American daily: eight million videos have been removed, you must prove your identity to upload videos, all content is subject to moderation by algorithms and employees in Cyprus and the videos are suspended at the slightest request for deletion.
“Stigma”
“We believe that the company must be more transparent and that society will evolve” on pornography, insists Sarah Bain, another associate of ECP. “Shame and stigma (of porn, editor’s note) prevent a necessary public debate”, regrets Salomon Friedman, who recalls that Pornhub claims 130 million daily users.
In the immediate future, ECP would especially like to restore relations with the Visa and Mastercard payment systems, which have cut off their service with the Mindgeek advertising agency, fearing to be associated by the American justice system with the actions of the group.
Solomon Friedman says he is aiming further: “We are long-term investors, we are going towards a normalization of this industry as happened with cannabis, which has become a boring business. You will gradually see the type and the quality of advertisers will evolve, and it will become mainstream”.
