California court says free internet porn is legal

Free internet porn is not illegal and is not competing with other premium websites, which charge a bomb to have access to premium sites, according to a California Appeals Court, which has dismissed a case against one free site, Redtube.com, as an unfair attack on free speech.

In 2009, RedTube.com owner Bright Imperial Ltd. of Hong Kong was sued for millions of dollars for the damage caused to other premium adult entertainment websites. The plaintiff, Kevin Cammarata of Los Angeles, alleged that RedTube was in violation of California's Unfair Practices Act. Cammarata had argued in court that by accepting payments from advertisers and streaming live adult content Red Tube has given itself an unfair advantage over other porn companies.

However, the California Appeals court dismissed the case as a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) suit - an action designed to censor free speech.

The publication of a video on the Internet, whether it depicts teenagers playing football or adult entertainment qualifies as 'conduct in furtherance of... free speech, the court ruled. ...All of Cammarata's causes of action arise from Bright's conduct of placing speech on the Internet where it can be viewed for free by the public. This is the 'predatory pricing' that Cammarata complains of.

If Cammarata's subscription-based website lost revenue after Redtube and other tube-based websites came on the scene it was because the tube-based business model is more efficient, not because of alleged predatory pricing by Bright, the court concluded.