In a true embodiment of the “Corporations after Pride Month is over” meme, Etsy has announced that it will ban most sex toys this July.
The online retailer announced its brand new “Adult Nudity and Sexual Content” policy, which was published on its website on June 27 and will go into effect July 29. The new policy prohibits the sale of insertable toys “applied to the genitalia,” or “designed for genitals to be inserted into them.” That would include, according to Mashable, dildos, vibrators, rings, and plugs.
Insertion remains a sore spot for Etsy, as the site will continue to allow “non-insertable and non-penetrable” toys and accessories, as long as those listing the items follow the retailer’s guidelines for “mature” content. According to the policy, any such items must be tagged as “mature” and can’t appear on a shop’s avatar or home page, and any thumbnails for the item must be “appropriate for general audiences.” Likewise, depictions of genitalia or products being used are banned.
The new policy also has guidelines for “non-realistic content,” such as paintings, illustrations, sculptures, and line drawings, which allow for some adult nudity. According to the policy, “visible breasts and buttocks,” “genitalia or anuses without any additional sexual context” and “sex acts without visible genitalia or anuses,” are still permitted. Prohibited non-realistic content includes sex acts with visible genitalia or anuses, as well genitalia or anuses in a “sexual context” (which the company specifies includes “visible arousal, sexual stimulation, sexual body fluids, or sexually suggestive posing.”)
Also prohibited under Etsy’s new policy are “fetishized items” like worn underwear or “content that sexualizes a specific body part,” such as foot pics. Also no longer allowed are any depictions of illegal sex acts, including bestiality, necrophilia, incest, or non-consensual sex.
Finally, Etsy will disallow any sexual language that includes references to “familial relationships,” such as “Daddy’s slut” or “Choke me Mommy.”
As Mashable notes, Etsy’s ban on sexual content is part of a crackdown on sexual content seen across the internet. Of course, we don’t need to remind you of the great 2018 death of Tumblr porn. In 2021, online video-sharing site OnlyFans briefly flirted with banning sexual content, before eventually going reverse cowgirl on that proposal. Lawmakers in 19 states have proposed requiring identification to view adult content.
So, if you’re in the market for, let’s say, an extra-large and green Incredible Hulk dildo, or something that can help you simulate getting fucked by Mothman, make sure to get your order in ASAP.
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