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What is Ofcom and how does it compare to German institutions?

Ofcom (Office of Communications) is the independent UK regulator for telecommunications, postal services, broadcasting (television and radio), and online services. It operates independently of the UK Government and is responsible, among other things, for promoting safer online services in the UK – especially for the protection of children. In the German context, Ofcom is best compared to a combination of the state media authorities (Landesmedienanstalten), the Commission for the Protection of Minors in the Media (KJM), and the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur). The KJM plays a central role in assessing and enforcing youth media protection, while the state media authorities handle media supervision and the Federal Network Agency primarily covers telecommunications and digital services aspects. Ofcom consolidates these responsibilities centrally and holds particularly far-reaching powers in the online sphere through the Online Safety Act.

Joe W. as an expert on the adult industry

In the current episode of the Adult Site Broker Talk podcast, Joe W. is the guest. He is a Supervision Principal at Ofcom with a focus on the adult industry. He engages with businesses in the sector and helps explain how the requirements of the Online Safety Act apply to them. Since 2023, Joe’s team has taken that information directly to website operators. Team members have joined industry conferences, run workshops and published tailored guidance covering different stages of the compliance process.

What obligations apply to websites and apps?

Websites and apps with users in the UK are subject to the Online Safety Act. When those services host pornography, they must rely on highly effective age assurance to establish that UK users are over the age of 18. Regulated services must protect all users from illegal content and introduce measures to prevent children from accessing pornography and other content considered harmful. Ofcom consults publicly before issuing guidance, supervises services to check that they understand and meet their obligations, and investigates potential failures. Suspected breaches can result in formal enforcement action.

Practical support from Ofcom

A recently issued Ofcom report, “Vet Your Vendor,” provides website owners with guidance on assessing companies that offer age-assurance services. You can follow them on X @Ofcom.

The host’s statement

Bruce, the adult site broker, host of the show, and CEO of Adult Site Broker, said: “It was great to finally get Joe on the podcast. I’ve wanted to hear from Ofcom for some time now. It was a great conversation.”

Our previous coverage of Ofcom

We ourselves have already reported several times on Ofcom – among other things about the opening of an investigation into Aylo (operator of Pornhub) over age verification (https://caszin.com/en/ofcom-opens-investigation-into-aylo-over-age-verification-on-pornhub/) as well as about the practical effects of the AVS obligation in Great Britain (https://caszin.com/en/avs-obligation-in-great-britain-what-has-it-achieved/). These reports showed that Ofcom takes consistent action and threatens high fines (up to £18 million or 10 percent of worldwide annual revenue). At the same time, critical questions remain open: whether the “highly effective” checks actually achieve the intended youth protection in practice, or whether users increasingly switch to unregulated offers and VPNs – and whether the effort required of the industry and the data protection concerns of users stand in a reasonable relationship to the benefits.

Why listening is worthwhile

That is precisely why listening to the new episode is worthwhile: Joe W. provides direct, practical insights into the authority’s perspective and way of working. Anyone active in the online adult business who has or may have UK users will find valuable background information from the source here. The episode is available now – highly recommended.

Listen here: https://adultsitebroker.com/podcast/