Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has vetoed AB 105, the state age-verification bill that passed the Wisconsin legislature in early March, despite strong opposition from Free Speech Coalition and other civil liberties groups. In his letter explaining the veto, Evers called the bill “an intrusion into the privacy of Wisconsin residents” and noted issues with data privacy and interference with the right to access constitutionally protected content. FSC worked with a broad coalition of organizations, including ACLU, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Woodhull Freedom Foundation, and Fight for the Future to educate legislators about the serious problems with the bill. Read more on our blog...

“According to Free Speech Coalition Director of Public Policy Mike Stabile, FSC worked closely with the sponsor of HB 2133 on the amendments. ‘We worked hard in Arizona to educate lawmakers as to the realities of our business and to secure amendments that reflect that,’ Stabile told XBIZ.” Read more on XBIZ...

“PrivateAV, developed by the Free Speech Coalition (FSC), is designed to provide a privacy-preserving and cost-effective approach to age verification. The integration allows Elevated X clients to enable PrivateAV directly within their website administration panel without requiring custom development or a third-party setup.” Read more on AVN...

“’FSC has devoted significant resources to educating Congress and federal banking regulators about the severe and widespread impacts of debanking on the legal adult industry, including original research, Statements for the Record, and direct engagement with lawmakers and agency officials,’ wrote Alison Boden, FSC's executive director, in a late Decemeber public filing in support of the OCC rule. ‘These efforts have documented that banking discrimination against the adult industry is systematic, economically harmful, and rooted in reputation risk rather than material financial concerns.’” Read more on AVN...

“‘Immediately what struck me was that this is cuck fantasy,’ says Mike Stabile, the Director of Public Policy for the adult industry trade association, the Free Speech Coalition. ‘This is fetish content reappropriated for a mainstream audience. And a wink-wink audience as well. People know what’s going on.’” Read more on Playboy...

“The Free Speech Coalition, a trade group that represents the adult entertainment industry, sued Texas in federal court in 2024. The lawsuit made it to the U.S. Supreme Court, where the conservatives ruled, 6-3, in favor of upholding the age verification law as constitutional but under a lower level of scrutiny.” Read more on The Baffler...

New research suggests age verification laws are already impacting sex educators and adult creators, without clear evidence that they effectively keep minors off adult sites. A survey from the Woodhull Freedom Foundation found that nearly 1 in 5 sex educators say their work has been affected, rising to 1 in 3 in states with active mandates. Most respondents also worry these laws could restrict access to critical sex education and resources. Separate data shows many adult creators are experiencing income declines, with a large majority linking those challenges to increased regulation and the broader “War on Porn.” Read more on Mashable...

Europe is moving quickly to enforce stronger age verification online, with the European Commission investigating major platforms under the Digital Services Act for relying on ineffective “click to enter” systems. Regulators are pushing for more robust solutions, including a proposed “mini-wallet” that would let users prove they are over 18 without sharing personal data like their birthdate or ID. This system is designed to balance child safety with privacy and could eventually connect to broader EU digital identity wallets expected by 2026. However, challenges remain, including uneven adoption across countries and concerns that these tools can still be easily bypassed in practice. Read more on Wired...

Apple has introduced device-level age verification in the UK, requiring users to confirm they are 18 or older to access unrestricted features, with verification tied to IDs or credit cards. Users who do not verify their age, or are under 18, will face content restrictions and monitoring features that can scan messages, photos, and calls for nudity. The move aligns with the UK’s Online Safety Act and reflects growing industry support for shifting age checks from individual websites to devices. Similar efforts are gaining traction in the U.S., where several states are exploring or passing laws that could require age verification at the operating system level. Read more on Gizmodo...

OnlyFans owner Leonid Radvinsky has died at 43, prompting reflection on his major influence in the online adult industry. Often compared to Mark Zuckerberg, Radvinsky was known for turning existing ideas into highly profitable platforms, particularly by scaling OnlyFans after acquiring it in 2018. Industry voices credit him with helping creators get paid reliably and bringing subscription-based adult content into the mainstream, though his legacy is debated among workers and critics. While he wasn’t the original founder, many believe his expertise in payments and platform growth was key to OnlyFans’ dominance. His impact highlights how central infrastructure and monetization are to shaping the modern creator economy. Read more on Hollywood Reporter...