Unveiling copyright law double bind through pragmatist feminism: adult content creators as authors

Abstract

ABSTRACT Adult content creators’ copyright is undermined in the profitable, gig economy, porn industry. From an analysis of the terms of use on the ManyVids, Chaturbate, OnlyFans and Pornhub porn platforms, the results show such creators have no bargaining power vis-à-vis online platforms. Although they create pornographic content, the copyrightability of their works is obscured because the recognition of their authorship is often a smokescreen. This is because, under the terms of use, they are forced to perpetually transfer their economic rights to online platforms without royalties in exchange as well as waiving their moral rights. By using Radin’s pragmatist feminist methodology, we suspend any critique of the goodness or badness of pornography in order to unveil the double bind that adult content creators working in the gig economy face in the context of UK copyright law.