Looks like being in the Aussie porn industry just got harder

[Philsl]

Australia to Implement Net Censorship Law in January.
Would require web and mobile producers to ensure age of surfers.
CANBERRA, Australia — Australia is set to implement new rules that will impose stringent regulations on online and mobile companies that offer sexually oriented content.
The new Restricted Access Systems Declaration, which goes into effect January 20, 2008, will put new restrictions on online chatrooms, websites and mobile phone content in an effort to prevent children from viewing unsuitable content. The new rules will apply to content that is either “hosted in Australia or provided from Australia.”

Among other requirements, all content service providers will have to ensure that individuals accessing restricted content provided in Australia are at least 15 years of age for MA15+ content or 18 years of age for R18+ content.

According to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), the government’s media and communications regulatory agency, “The new regulatory framework will apply to most content service providers who supply content via a carriage service. Access to commercial MA15+ and R18+ content provided to consumers as internet content, live content via the internet, mobile premium services including mobile portal and premium rate SMS/MMS services, and premium rate voice services will be subject to the restricted access rules. Telephone sex services will be subject to the restricted access declaration from 20 July 2008 when provisions of Part 9A of the Telecommunications (Consumer Protection and Service Standards) Act 1999 governing such services are repealed.”

The main requirements of the new regulatory framework are:

* a prohibition on X18+ and RC content;
* a prohibition on R18+ content, unless it is subject to appropriate access restrictions;
* a new prohibition on commercial MA15+ content, unless it is subject to appropriate access restrictions;
* providers of hosting services, live content services, link services and commercial content services to have in place access restrictions if providing R18+ and commercial MA15+ content;
* ‘take down’, ‘service cessation’ and ‘link deletion’ notices to remove content or access to content that is the subject of a complaint; and
* a co-regulatory approach that provides for the development of industry codes to address issues including the classification of content, procedures for handling complaints about content and increasing awareness of potential safety issues associated with the use of content services.

Not everyone is pleased with the new laws, however. Australian privacy and free speech groups have denounced the new measures as extreme, undemocratic and bad for business.

In a declaration issued in November, the Australian Privacy Foundation stated, “As currently drafted, the proposed scheme of Restricted Access Systems Declarations is an unwarranted and frightening violation of people’s legitimate expectation of privacy.”

Last month, Fiona Patten, CEO of the Eros Association, Australia's industry trade association, told XBIZ, “This [regulatory scheme] will be devastating to the Australian industry and bad for anyone internationally who has Australian customers."

[mikesinner]

Hopefully it won't go through or they will make some changes once they hear all the complaints.

[Paul Markham]

Abbey Winters will be a big loser. Where is LB for more news?

[ScreaM]

I think this is why LB is moving to New Zealand.

[emjay]

For a country that has one of the world’s most tolerant attitudes to gambling, you might be forgiven for thinking that Australia’s Government would adopt a similarly liberal attitude when it comes to online adult.

As it turns out, quite the opposite would appear to be the case...

[Dupont]

Originally Posted by ScreaM

I think this is why LB is moving to New Zealand.

Really? that is unfortunate

[RageCash-Ben]

The new rules will apply to content that is either “hosted in Australia or provided from Australia.”

I wonder if there is a way around that

[FastWilly]

with that line you would think that content created outside Au and hosted in US would be exempt. I guess it depends on the definition of (provided from). Thats the key. Maybe a server side app that allow you to pull content directly to host so it never hits your personal computer.

[gecko]

Well that sucks..

[Wazdom]

really not that concerned personally
you should see what kids can get on their mobile phones down here LOL
thats what the laws are really about .. adult content hosted down here has needed to be behind some age verification system for years now. business as usual, just without all the shitty 'get titty vids on your phone' advertisements.

[atlant]

[OFFTOPIC]

I've heard from one affiliate program owner (a big one) that Australia has one if the highest chargebacks ratios in the world... somewhere arround 20%.

[/OFFTOPIC]

[ScreaM]

Originally Posted by Dupont

Really? that is unfortunate

I'm not sure hence I said 'I think'.

[nekrom]

meh sounds like old news to me.

-N

[_LB_]

Yeah mostly political grandstanding, but unfortunately it will go through in some form. How its implemented remains to be seen.

In its present form looks kinda like an opt out service, but every blocking mechanism you throw in front of content slows the whole system down, so god knows how it will affect speeds.

Illegal to host porn in Aus, but as far as I know promoting it from here is still ok, just you might see significantly less sales from Aus surfers.

[Senwolf]

Here is how I look at it.
Seems like its a case of mommy and daddy dont want to take responsibility over what their kiddies do and so they want to pawn that onto someone else's shoulders.
To bad people cant stand up and do their damn job. An before anyone goes and says well do you have a kid yes I do.

An believe me I would know if he is looking at porn I have the tracking software installed on both of his accounts on both systems connected to the internet.

[ScreaM]

Originally Posted by _LB_

Illegal to host porn in Aus, but as far as I know promoting it from here is still ok, just you might see significantly less sales from Aus surfers.

Same here but I think they need to become more lenient. After all, it's the land of Kama Sutra.

[Jethro]

Very interesting,good to know