Popular pornography website XTube — notably dubbed the “sister site” to porn behemoth Pornhub — announced this week the site’s forthcoming closure.
The news comes as XTube and Pornhub parent company MindGeek faces increasing scrutiny over apparent sex trafficking and rapes streaming on its platforms.
XTube, which started in 2008, announced this week that video and photo uploads will be disabled, and by Sept. 5, the site will be shuttered.
“Like any tech company, we are constantly evaluating our content offerings and products to best serve our users,” MindGeek said in a statement related to the XTube decision.
“XTube has always had a dedicated but small community, and we believe that its users and creators will be better served on one of our existing platforms, where they will be able to take advantage of wider reach and increased visibility,” the company added.
“The exact reason for the shuttering is unclear but anti-trafficking advocates have heralded the closure as a victory for their movement,” FOX Business noted.
The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) told The Daily Wire via email that the XTube closure is evidence that the “pornography industry is collapsing.”
“XTube’s announced shutdown is more evidence that MindGeek’s exploitation empire is crumbling. This is welcome news, given the mounting evidence that MindGeek has hosted and profited from child sex abuse material, rape, sex trafficking, nonconsensual material, sexual violence and other racist and misogynistic sexual content on its myriad of pornography websites,” read a statement from Dawn Hawkins, CEO of NCOSE. “XTube’s closure is a clear victory for the movement to hold Pornhub, MindGeek, and the pornography industry accountable for their facilitation of sexual abuse and exploitation.”
“Numerous survivors have said that MindGeek refused to remove their sexual abuse and sexual assault material from Pornhub and its other porn websites; many have filed lawsuits against MindGeek, including NCOSE’s class action lawsuit on behalf of two survivors of childhood sex trafficking,” Hawkins said.
“XTube’s decision to close was not made in a vacuum. This decision comes after mounting pressure from legislators, outrage in the media, loss of mainstream corporate support, and survivors stepping forward to demand justice through lawsuits.”
“We hope that XTube’s closing is a harbinger of things to come for MindGeek. We look forward to the day we can announce that Pornhub and additional MindGeek-owned pornography sites are ending,” the CEO added.
Activist and #Traffickinghub movement founder Laila Mickelwait celebrated the news, as well.
“Another one bites the dust,” Mickelwait posted to Twitter on Tuesday. “Soon we’ll be saying goodbye to the whole ‘MindGeek Criminal Enterprise’ as owners Antoon, Tassillo and Bergmair are hauled away in handcuffs for profiting from & globally distributing ‘child pornography’/CSAM, rape & sex trafficking. #Traffickinghub.”
Another one bites the dust.
Soon we’ll be saying goodbye to the whole “MindGeek Criminal Enterprise” as owners Antoon, Tassillo and Bergmair are hauled away in handcuffs for profiting from & globally distributing “child pornography”/CSAM, rape & sex trafficking.#Traffickinghub pic.twitter.com/m2LW29K926
— Laila Mickelwait (@LailaMickelwait) July 7, 2021
The spotlight on Pornhub’s alleged actions came to a head last year after a scathing The New York Times report outlined stories of the company allegedly monetizing child rapes and other non-consensual acts. Mickelwait has been calling attention to such apparent abuses for years.
“The ensuing controversy included Visa suspending its payments and Mastercard severing its ties with the company,” FOX business noted.