OnlyFans said changes to its terms of use were “necessary”. (Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty
OnlyFans has said it banned “sexually explicit” content due to issues with securing “banking and payment services” for users.
The website, which allows people to subscribe to individual creators, has long been a hub for sex workers to connect directly with their fans and earn income by sharing personal content.
However, OnlyFans confirmed last week that it will be banning “sexually explicit” content from October onwards. Its new terms of use means that creators can share some nude images, but videos and photos showing sex and masturbation will be prohibited.
In a statement shared on Twitter on Saturday (21 August), OnlyFans said it is working to find a solution for disenfranchised sex workers – many of whom face losing out on income.
“Dear Sex Workers, the OnlyFans community would not be what it is today without you,” a tweet posted to the company’s Twitter account read.
“The policy change was necessary to secure banking and payment services to support you. We are working around the clock to come up with solutions.”
Dear Sex Workers,
The OnlyFans community would not be what it is today without you.
The policy change was necessary to secure banking and payment services to support you.
We are working around the clock to come up with solutions.#SexWorkIsWork
— OnlyFans (@OnlyFans) August 21, 2021
The statement appears to confirm speculation that OnlyFans’ decision was motivated, at least in part, by issues with financial institutions and outside investment.
While the company has pumped out more than $3 billion in creator earnings, banks have been put off by the plethora of sexual content on its website, sources told Axios.
OnlyFans accused of ‘dropping’ sex workers
More than 7,000 people had replied to OnlyFans’ tweet at the time of writing, with many of those responding criticising the company’s response.
“You NEVER promoted us, only random fitness instructors and celebrities,” one OnlyFans user wrote, adding that the company had “dropped” sex workers. “WE brought the traffic. And you kicked us to the curb instead of standing up for us against the payment services.”
Another added: “You never once acknowledged we even existed. You’ve been trying to distance yourself from us. You don’t support us. Those changes don’t help us if we can’d do our jobs on there.”
Under its new terms of use, OnlyFans will prohibit “actual or simulated sexual intercourse, including genital-genital, oral-genital, anal-genital, or oral-anal, between persons of any sex”.
It will also ban “actual or simulated masturbation” and “extreme or offensive” depictions of a person’s genitals or anus.
Notably, the platform will also prohibit users from showing “actual or simulated material depicting bodily fluids commonly secreted during sexual conduct.”