Turns out, Pornhub really is “Extremely Interested” in acquiring Tumblr. Pornhub confirmed to BuzzFeed News that it is interested in acquiring Tumblr after news broke that Verizon is looking to sell the blogging platform.
Pornhub Vice President Corey Price said in an email to BuzzFeed News that the porn-streaming giant is extremely interested in buying Tumblr, the once uniquely horny hub for young women and queer people that banned adult content last December to the disappointment of many of its users.
Price said that restoring Tumblr’s NSFW edge would be central to their acquisition of it, were it to actually happen.
Tumblr owner Verizon is reportedly currently seeking a buyer for the blogging platform, which according to the Wall Street Journal has struggled to meet revenue targets.
“Tumblr was a safe haven for those who wanted to explore and express their sexuality, adult entertainment aficionados included,” Price told BuzzFeed News. “We’ve long been dismayed that such measures were taken to eradicate erotic communities on the platform, leaving many individuals without an asylum through which they could comfortably peruse adult content.”
BuzzFeed News has reached out to Verizon Media for comment.
Tumblr’s ownership history has been rocky to say the least in the last few years. First, it was purchased by Yahoo for $1.1 billion in 2013. By 2016, its value had been written down by $230 million. Then Tumblr ended up at Oath, the former name for Verizon Media Group, after Verizon bought Yahoo in 2017.
Tumblr’s life at Verizon has been difficult.
In December, Tumblr announced that it would be banning pornography. NSFW content had long been one of the cornerstones of Tumblr’s community and the news of a new SFW platform inspired threats of a mass user exodus. Before the ban, Tumblr was often regarded as one of the best places for independently created and curated pornographic content for young women and members of the queer and LGBT communities.
Tumblr was also heavily criticized for a poorly implemented anti-pornography ban. The AI began flagging non-pornographic content, which ironically probably helped increase user engagement because everyone started making memes about it.
https://twitter.com/Pornhub/status/1069984706521747458
Jokes about Pornhub buying Tumblr have been circulating since the porn ban, after the platform tweeted about embracing Tumblr’s pornographic refugees.
“There are obvious synergies between the two brands and value Pornhub could derive from Tumblr. We’re extremely interested in acquiring the platform and are very much looking forward to one day restoring it to its former glory with NSFW content,” Price said.
3 Responses
Depending on how MindGeek runs Tumblr this could be excellent news for performers. If they allow all porn people to post explicit pictures to promote them this could be the best thing that happened to porn since the VHS tape. If they limit posting to MindGeek contract girls or people promoting their content it could be even worse than Verizon owning it.
MindGeek has the capital. Nobody is disputing that. I’m not gonna jump on the hype like all the media outlets are though. If it happens, I’ll start making some noise. Until then? A great PR stunt, that’s for sure……
Dear god, Porn Hub please acquire Tumblr.
ASAP