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There are two kinds of people: those who watch porn, and those who don’t it! Jokes aside, pornography is still an incredibly taboo topic even in 2019. Most people don’t talk about it, but when we do, it’s all horror stories or panic about society’s slide into moral degradation.
But we won’t be able to understand pornography – what the local industry is like and its effects on society – if we don’t talk about it. So let’s jump right into it! Here’s everything you need to know about Aussie porn.
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How Big Is The Australian Porn Industry Compared To Other Countries?
Because of very strict obscenity laws in Australia, most local porn companies need to operate on the downlow, so there’s not much we know about the porn industry.
The porn scene in Australia is a lot smaller compared to the ones in North America, Brazil, or Japan. According to porn actress Madison Missina, there are very few full-time performers and only a “handful of producers”.
We do know that there are more porn companies shooting in Melbourne than in Sydney, but because of draconian laws about depicting sexual activity, that might change. Abby Winters, a local XXX site, had to move base to Amsterdam to escape legal consequences of producing porn movies in Australia.
How Popular Is Australian Porn?
It’s difficult to say exactly how many people watch Aussie porn. A quick search on Pornhub, the biggest free online pornsite in the world, shows that there are less than 1000 search results for “Australian”, and just over a thousand for “Aussie”. This is compared to “Japanese”, which had a whopping 239,500 hits.
So we’re not producing a lot of professional, HD, or amateur porn, but are we at least popular? Well, even with only a thousand or so videos, they prove quite popular – most videos have hundreds of thousands or even millions of views, with pretty high approval ratings as well.
How Easy Is It To View Porn In Australia?
Although the legality of producing and distributing porn is tenuous at best, it’s not illegal or even difficult to watch porn in Australia! In fact, according to Pornhub’s 2018 Year in Review, Australia is in the top 20 countries that visit their site most frequently.
What Types Of Porn Are Available In Australia? Which Ones Are The Most Popular?
We Aussies are really into gay women – our most searched term in 2018, according to Pornhub, was “lesbian”. The other terms rounding out our top five categories are “MILF”, “threesome”, “hentai”, and “mature”. We also apparently really like Japanese uncensored videos, which jumped 225% last year. Australians are also 94% more likely to view Asian porn than the rest of the world.
Is Porn Free To Watch? Is There Paid Porn?
Like in the rest of the world, most of the porn Australians consume is free, thanks to online sites like Pornhub, Brazzers, and RedTube. This definitely hurt the paid porn industry, reducing wages for porn performers and decreasing sales on paysites.
But that doesn’t mean that people don’t pay for porn, they just do it through a different channel – such as “social media porn”. Many cam girls, pornstars, and other sex workers use social media platforms like Snapchat and Twitter to sell nudes, videos, and other work. Porn adapts to whatever changes there are in the industry, and this is a prime example.
Are There Australian Porn Sites?
Unfortunately for our industry, there aren’t any locally-based porn sites any longer. Abby Winters was launched in Melbourne in 2000 and was an immediate hit, featuring Australian performers and an all-female Aussie crew. However, it moved its base to Amsterdam in 2010, after having opened a second Sydney office just three years prior.
Are There Any Big Australian Porn Stars?
Despite our small porn scene, we have quite a few popular Australian porn stars. The biggest names are:
- Madison Missina, voted Best Female Porn Star multiple years in a row
- Angela White, 2016 XBIz Foreign Performer of the Year
- Gigi Allens, a Playboy Australia centerfold and 2nd most popular Aussie porn star on tube sites
- Kiki Vidis, Oz’s Hottest Porn Star 2014-2015
Is Porn Legal In Australia?
Interestingly enough, especially considering how much porn Australia consumes, it can be illegal to sell, make, distribute, and produce porn across Australia. Except in the ACT and Northern Territory, any film that depicts sexual activity can be banned.
The actual law is, however, quite vague about what can or cannot be shown. Movies and images can be banned for showing “fetishes or practises which are considered offensive” – the definition of which is subjective and arbitrary. The law does explicitly ban bondage, spanking, fisting, and other forms of BDSM.
Porn is not allowed online either. Any video hosted on an Australian server or ISP can be taken down, upon request from the eSafety Commissioner.
What Are The Revenge Porn Laws In Australia?
Just last year, Australia passed “revenge porn legislation” that punished the non-consensual sharing of someone’s nud/sexual photos or videos online. If convicted, perpetrators could be fined up to $105,000 and face up to five years’ imprisonment.
Conclusion
The Australian porn industry is a small one, largely because of strict censorship laws. But maybe, as the conversation around sex and sex work kicks into high gear, we can talk about online pornography openly – and possibly start to see some change.
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