Professional Studies - Report: Amendment of the 2003 Communications Act

On 2nd December 2014 the '2003 Communications Act' was amended which placed restrictions with in the British Adult Film Industry. The amendment took form as the 'Audiovisual Media Services Regulations 2014' which now requires that video-on-demand (VoD) online porn must now follow the same guidelines laid out by the British Board of Film Censors (BBFC) for DVD and sex shop porn. 

The acts that have been banned are as follows-

Spanking

Caning

Aggressive whipping

Penetration by any object "associated with violence"

Physical or verbal abuse (regardless of  if consensual)

Urolagnia (known as "water sports")

Role-playing as non-adults

Physical restraint

Humiliation

Female ejaculation

Strangulation*

Facesitting*

Fisting*

*these acts are viewed by the BBFC as potentially "life-endangering".

With a quick look through these it seems to place restriction on female pleasure more than anything. Due to the amendment PornHub introduced a new set of statistics to the public about the above acts popularity in Britain compared to the rest of the world. The results show that they could bee a significant drop in sales of BDSM-type porn in Britain which could have a significantly negative effect on production across Britain as a whole, effecting sales, distribution, profits and even jobs within the Adult Film Industry.

With the amendment taking place already, a series of negative responses from Industry workers and the general public. The most notable of which was the 'Mass face sitting demonstration' on 12th December 2014. This featured hundred of people protesting against the amendment and was organised by Charlotte Rose who said-     "These laws are not only sexist but they taking away people's choices without consent," she told the Independent.

Erika Lust, an erotic film maker, told The Independent  “As an erotic film maker, I'm saddened by what I hear, not only because my fellow producers will suffer as businesses, but because what is most apparent is the enforced restriction on what appears to be acts from which women derive pleasure.”

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/

http://www.pornhub.com/insights/uk-bans-porn-brits-love/