LA County Court Rules Condom Ordinance As Lawful
The exodus of hardcore porn shoots from Los Angeles County looks set to continue after a federal appeals court ruled that an ordinance that requires all porn actors to wear condoms in hardcore pornographic films was lawful.
Vivid have already moved all their productions out of the area to an unspecified location, but could all porn production in the area cease as a result of this? It would be a shame to see an area synonymous with porn production for decades become the adult industry equivalent of a ghost town. However, the porn industry always finds a way of recovering from these knocks and no doubt will do the same here.
Could it result in more porn companies adopting a condom only policy, however? Many observers predicted that when Wicked Pictures announced a condom only policy back in 2004 that many companies would follow suit. That trend did not occur and although the company still remains popular, it arguably does not possess the industry strength it once did and was bought out by the Manwin label in 2010. Other porn companies seem unlikely to take the risk of making such a wholesale move that still seems unpopular with many consumers.
More likely is that porn will find a way around the ruling, move out of the county altogether, and hope that the ban does not extend to other parts of the state. Another appeal does not seem out of the question and time will tell if the industry’s often underestimated strength can dig them out of this predicament. (Diazepam)