Today I would like to talk to you about “AN 5196 Revised Standards for New Specialty Merchant Registration Requirements for Adult Content Merchants,” which is a policy put out by Mastercard and is being used by shady content managers to try and control the flow of the content of their clients.
AN 5196 Revised Standards for New Specialty Merchant Registration Requirements for Adult Content Merchants is very much a real thing. It’s a policy that was put into place, effective as of October 15, 2021.
But what does it mean, and now does it specifically apply to people who own or have ever done content with another performer?
Well, first, take a look at the exact wording.
Mastercard is introducing additional requirements to the existing Specialty Merchant Registration requirements for adult content and services merchants to ensure that they employ strong content control measures that include the monitoring, blocking, and where necessary, taking down of content as appropriate.
The new requirements are described in detail in the revised standards. As an overview, merchants that engage in the provision of adult content and services will be required to:
- Enter into written agreements with third-party users that upload or generate content for the merchant’s website, which include provisions relating to written consent of persons depicted, and identity and age verification of persons depicted;
- Only permit content uploads from verified content providers;
- Have a process for verifying the age and identity of third-party users that upload or generate content;
- Review all uploaded content prior to publication to ensure it is not illegal or otherwise in violation of the Mastercard standards;
- Be able to fully control its platform used for live streaming, including real-time monitoring and content removal;
- Allow a person depicted in content can appeal for its removal;
- Ensure merchant marketing and search terms do not give the impression that its content contains child
exploitation materials or depiction of nonconsensual activities;- With respect to content that is potentially illegal or otherwise in violation of the Mastercard standards:
– not use such content to draw users to the website;
– have a complaint process for the reporting, review, and if warranted, removal of such content; and
– provide monthly reports to the acquirer of such flagged content, along with any complaints received and relevant actions taken in response; and- Have effective policies in place that prohibit the merchant’s website from being used to promote or facilitate human trafficking, sex trafficking, or physical abuse.
Upon request, the acquirer must be able to provide Mastercard with temporary account credentials allowing access to the merchant website for viewing of content behind a paywall or where access is otherwise restricted to website members.
As someone who has actually sat down and had conversations with reps from both Visa and Mastercard let me talk about what this means for you — you, as in someone who produces content with other adult performers – yes, this includes content “trades.”
So what they are saying is that if you are going to make content with someone, you have to know they are over 18 and be willing to prove it.
This is not anything new. You should already be doing this.
What this means is, you can’t just assume a person is okay. At the time you produce the content, you must get a copy of their ID. Notice I said at the time you produce the content. That part is important.
It is also saying that the platform (like OnlyFans or Pornhub or ManyVids, or whatever platform you upload your content to) must first verify YOUR identity and age. It falls under the “know your customer” rules. This means that the platform has to know who YOU are first, before allowing you to upload your content to their platform.
Next and this is the part where shady content managers are trying to claim rights here, Mastercard states that you must allow a person who stars in a scene a means to appeal for its removal.
This line, in particular, is important because it’s all in the wording and the meaning behind it.
If you are paid $500 (or any amount) to star in a scene, you sign a model release, give a copy of your ID and move on. That content gets posted on some platforms or many platforms. It doesn’t matter. What happens beyond the date you filmed it is no longer up to you. You can’t go back weeks or months or even years later and be like, oh, I don’t want you to show my content anymore. I only want my fans to see the content *I* make of myself.
That’s not what this clause is about. Despite what some people may want you to believe.
This clause is about allowing REAL victims of sex trafficking and revenge porn to have a method of getting their content removed – content they never legally consented to be in, in the first place.
When a performer signs a model release, they consent to the terms of that agreement – which is to release that content. There is no going back and changing your mind. That’s not how the law works, and that’s not what this Mastercard regulation is about.
Dani Maye is an adult performer in the UK. She’s starred in more than 100 commercial scenes during the last 14 years, including quite a bit of content for Bluebird Films, a company I worked for at the time she was making those movies.
She now makes her money on OnlyFans and has started issuing false DMCAs to try and get others to take her other content down.
- Content she was paid to produce.
- Content she signed a model release for.
She is now sending out demand letters stating that if people don’t stop using that commercial content, she produced years ago, she will report them to Mastercard for violations of “AN 5196 Revised Standards for New Specialty Merchant Registration Requirements for Adult Content Merchants.”
She claims to have a lawyer that she’s going to speak to. And I hope she does. Because any competent lawyer will tell her what I have in this article. The MasterCard regulation about allowing a person to submit an appeal for removal doesn’t say you have to grant that request. But beyond that, it’s not about girls who change their minds.
This is about protecting girls who never consented in the first place. It’s about protecting victims from being exploited. Not greedy cunts with suitcase pimp boyfriends telling them to get their old content offline so they can make more money off of them.
The adult industry has it bad enough dealing with laws and the credit card companies. Why does someone always have to try and abuse the system?
Girls like that make it hard for the rest of us, those of us who do follow the laws and all the crazy rules credit card companies force us to comply with.
Girls who lie hurt those of us just trying to do the right thing.
But that aside, what do you, the producer of adult content, need to do to stay compliant?
- Make sure that you have a copy of the ID of every person you film content with. Take a 2nd picture of them holding their IDs.
- Make sure you fill out the associated 2257 docs
- Make sure you fill out an updated model release with the new online platforms clause
- Have everyone you work with fill out a performer consent checklist
Don’t have these docs? Click here to get a copy.
If a person submits a request for you to pull their content, make sure you take the time to actually review the request. Please don’t just assume you are in the right. Were they 18 at the time they filmed the scene? Did you check their ID to make sure? Did they sign a model release?
Next, make sure you take the time to reply to the person’s request. Don’t just ignore it. Mastercard didn’t specifically spell this out in the posted AN 5196 Revised Standards for New Specialty Merchant Registration Requirements for Adult Content Merchants regulations but when we spoke with Mastercard, that is one of the things they mentioned.
- We need to document the date and time the person made the request.
- We then need to keep a copy of our reply. Even if the reply is just to say we have reviewed your request and you signed a model release, so no takesie backsies.
- Provide your proof of the girl being over 18 and a sign model release if Mastercard asks for it, along with a copy of your rejection to their appeal, which lets them know you did review her ID, she (or he) was over 18 at the time of the production and the performer signed a valid model release.
Never take your paperwork for granted.
Always get a copy of the performer’s ID as well as a sign model release, even for content trades.
Beyond Mastercard regulations, this is a federal law that has very real legal penalties if you don’t.
If you do seven scenes with someone, you need to do this seven times. Yes, I realize that a person doesn’t suddenly become less 18 as time goes on, but that’s the law as it’s written for now, so get a copy of their ID every single time you do a new scene with them.
Stay safe, my friends, and hit me up if you ever have any questions. I’m not a lawyer, but I can help you with some basic questions and refer you to a real industry lawyer if you need to go that route.
Don’t let girls like Danielle Maye bully you into taking down the content you have every right to make money from.
Girls like her who abuse the system hurt all of us, and it’s time we take a stand against them.
Dani Maye this is for you!
You can bullshit other people all you want, but I actually worked for Bluebird when you did. So I know better.
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