Webmasters Complain Yahoo Is Ripping Them Off

LOS ANGELES — Adult webmasters are echoing a claim Perfect 10 owner Norman Zada has made for years: Search engines erode the value of content from adult websites by serving it up to searchers without authorization and without offering anything in return to the sites the content comes from.

More specifically, some search engines point directly to files rather than the pages that contains the files, allowing searchers to view images or video without visiting the website that hosts the image. What’s more, most search engines do not make it clear to searchers that the images they find are not public domain property, leaving images vulnerable to theft.

In February, Zada won a preliminary injunction against Google to prevent it from linking to full-size images belonging to his company. He argued that Perfect 10 had spent $36 million over the past nine years building its brand, including $12 million spent capturing 800 models in photos.

Zada sued both Google and Amazon.com, which licenses the technology in question from Google. The court granted the preliminary injunction, stating that Google’s linking practices likely amounted to copyright infringement.

Now adult webmasters are feeling Zada’s pain, prompting a post on GFY titled “Yahoo rapes mgp's and makes their own porn video service.”

The post includes a link to a Yahoo page — actually multiple pages — containing hundreds of videos lifted directly from Jerk-Off-TGP.com.

“Pretty fucking ballsy,” poster Smoky the Bear wrote. “They basically recorded every video link on the entire site and are redisplaying them without giving one link back to the site they raped them from. Why would any surfer go to jerk-off-tgp when they can get it all in one easy format from yahoo, just straight videos?”

Adult webmasters aren’t the only ones angry at search engines. Earlier this year, the Motion Picture Association of America sued IsoHunt.com and TorrentBox.com for allegedly providing links to illegal copies of movies and TV shows. In 2005, the Authors Guild and several of its members, including a former Poet Laureate of the U.S., filed a class action suit in federal court in Manhattan against Google over its scanning and copying of books. And Search Engine Watch has called search engines the “weapons of mass destruction of copyright infringement.”

However, there have not been any definitive legal decisions regarding how far search engines can go and what they can do.

Also, a portion of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act known as the DMCA takedown provisions provides safe harbor to online service providers that promptly take down content if someone alleges an infringes of a copyright.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

2025 XBIZ Amsterdam Website Launches With Call for Speakers

XBIZ is pleased to announce that the website for its annual European conference, XBIZ Amsterdam, is now live.

NC Governor Vetoes Bill Targeting Adult Industry, Override Possible

North Carolina Governor Josh Stein today vetoed a bill imposing new regulations that adult industry observers have warned could push adult websites and platforms to ban most adult creators and content.

25,000 Sign Petition to Legalize Pornography in Ukraine

An OnlyFans model’s petition to decriminalize pornography in Ukraine has amassed the 25,000 signatures required for official consideration by President Volodymyr Zelensky.

WannaCollab Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

WannaCollab has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

FSC Unpacks SCOTUS Age Verification Ruling in Webinar

The Free Speech Coalition conducted a public webinar Tuesday to help adult industry stakeholders understand the Supreme Court’s recent decision in FSC v. Paxton, and its potential implications.

UK Lawmaker Calls for Appointment of 'Porn Minister'

Baroness Gabrielle Bertin, the Conservative member of Parliament who recently convened a new anti-pornography task force, is calling for the appointment of a “minister for porn,” according to British news outlet The Guardian.

FSC Toasts Jeffrey Douglas for 30 Years of Service

n the very same evening when the adult industry was hit hard by the Supreme Court ruling supporting Texas’ controversial age verification law, HB 1181, members of the Free Speech Coalition board, staff and supporters gathered to celebrate Jeffrey Douglas’ 30 years as board chair — a fitting reflection of his reputation as an eternal optimist.

TTS Opens UK Testing Location

Talent Testing Service (TTS) has opened a new U.K. location in Ware, Hertfordshire.

FSC: Age-Verification Laws Go Into Effect in South Dakota, Georgia, Wyoming on July 1

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has published a statement regarding new age verification laws set to go into effect tomorrow in South Dakota, Georgia, and Wyoming.

FSC Responds to Supreme Court Decision on Texas AV Law

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has released a statement responding to last week's Supreme Court decision on FSC v. Paxton, the Texas age verification law.

Show More