Performers Seek to Drop Blacklisting Lawsuit Against Meta

Performers Seek to Drop Blacklisting Lawsuit Against Meta

SAN FRANCISCO — Adult Performance Artists Guild board officers Alana Evans, Kelly Pierce and Ruby informed a California federal court on Monday that they want to drop their lawsuit claiming that Meta conspired with OnlyFans to blacklist rival premium fan platforms’ talent.

As XBIZ reported, Evans, Pierce and Ruby originally filed the civil lawsuit in February 2022 against OnlyFans and its owner, as well as Instagram and Facebook’s parent company, Meta. The suit replicated claims from an earlier lawsuit filed on behalf of FanCentro in November 2021, alleging a conspiracy to engage in “tortious interference with contract and intentional interference with prospective business.”

The proposed class action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, “accused Meta of blocking social media posts from adult entertainers who compete with artists who perform exclusively on OnlyFans’ subscription platform,” Law 360 reported.

In their motion to dismiss, the three performers “said their lawyers recently met with Meta’s counsel and were told that the company didn’t have the evidence that would back their case’s key theory,” which alleged that “their posts were filtered through a database the Meta social media sites use to flag and remove content produced by ‘dangerous individuals and organizations,’ to help curtail the spread of terrorism and violent extremism online,” Law 360 reported.

The plaintiffs say Meta informed them that the company “found no evidence that any competitor platform was currently on the list, or had been nominated for inclusion.”

According to their motion, “based on the information Meta defendants provided, the information essential to plaintiffs’ class allegations is not available,” making further discovery efforts “futile.”

The plaintiffs also stated that Meta provided “ambiguous and incomplete responses” to their questions and that they were told that “there is no archived version of the blacklist, which changes over time. There’s also no automated process for making additions to the list … as each entry goes through a nomination and review process,” Law 360 reported. “After hearing from Meta and acknowledging the lack of data, the performers told the court that they couldn’t move forward in federal court with their federal class claims, the only basis they alleged for federal jurisdiction.”

Meta also filed a motion to the court on Monday, seeking summary judgment.

U.S. District Judge William Alsup is scheduled to hear both motions on April 24.

As XBIZ reported, in July, Alsup dismissed claims against OnlyFans’ parent companies, Fenix International Ltd. and Fenix Internet LLC, and against owner Leon Radvinsky, following the plaintiffs’ disavowal of allegations that wire transfers were used to bribe senior Meta executives.

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

NYC Adult Stores Petition for Rehearing in Zoning Law Case

A group of adult businesses on Tuesday petitioned the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit to rehear a case involving a zoning law that could severely limit adult stores’ operations in New York City.

Ofcom Releases Transparency Reporting Guidelines

Ofcom, the U.K. media regulator, has made public its official guidance detailing how online service providers — including adult sites — will be required to publish annual transparency reports on their efforts to protect children from online harms.

New AV Rules Take Effect for Ireland-Based Sites

Ireland’s Online Safety Code came into force Monday, including a provision requiring adult sites headquartered in Ireland to implement age assurance measures beyond self-declaration.

XBIZ Amsterdam Calls on New Startups for 'Spotlight' Program

XBIZ is pleased to announce that its new “Startup Spotlight” programming will make its European premiere at XBIZ Amsterdam 2025, set to take place Sept. 2-5 at the Jakarta Hotel Amsterdam.

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Show More