Pornhub moves to only accept Bitcoin & other cryptocurrency after Visa/Mastercard cut ties over sexual exploitation report

Adult entertainment website Pornhub is accepting cryptocurrency as a default payment for premium content, informing users they are “unable to accept credit cards” at this moment.

If one wants to enjoy more than just the free video content on Pornhub, a major part of which the website has already deleted, they’ll need some cryptocurrency to offer up. 

The website’s premium service costs $9.99 a month and they are accepting a wide variety of cryptocurrency, including Bitcoin, ZCash, Tether, and numerous others.

The Canada-based Pornhub saw its relationships with Mastercard and Visa severed after the companies launched investigations into explosive claims published by The New York Times alleging sexually exploitative content on the site that included women being assaulted and minors engaging in sex acts.

In a Monday statement, Pornhub announced a purging of content to the site. The website “suspended all previously uploaded content that was not created by content partners or members of the Model Program.” The 'Model Program' is made up of verified users. Previously, anyone could upload content to the site.

Critics have argued Visa and Mastercard’s decision could hurt performers more than anyone else, as they are now extremely limited in their payments options. 

Pornhub has suggested that they are being unfairly targeted by anti-pornography groups. 

“It is clear that Pornhub is being targeted not because of our policies and how we compare to our peers, but because we are an adult content platform,” the company wrote in a Sunday blog post, citing the National Center on Sexual Exploitation and Exodus Cry/TraffickingHub as two of the organizations.

“These are organizations dedicated to abolishing pornography, banning material they claim is obscene, and shutting down commercial sex work,” the company added.

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