And thus the republic falls to applause: net neutrality ends

[Armonica_Templar]

There is of course the most powerful industry in the world that has not spoken

You might be feeling them weigh in
Because if they boycott any congressman who supports the new rules expect election changes

6 People You've Never Heard Of (Who Secretly Rule The World)

#6. Almost All Of The Porn On The Internet (Even The Illegally Downloaded Porn) Is Controlled By One Company

MindGeek

Despite a website that paints them as the blandest, most inoffensive corporation since Staples (they bill themselves as "a leader in web design, IT, web development, and SEO"), the nigh-invisible Internet conglomerate MindGeek runs all of the porn on the Internet. Even the pirated stuff. Considering that roughly 35 percent of all downloads are deposits into the stroke bank, it can be truly said that MindGeek holds the keys to the online kingdom.

Stephane Groleau

There's a very good reason their offices are all white.

Since 2007, MindGeek (then called Manwin) has established an absolute foothold in the pirated porn business, allowing any anonymous dick to upload any anonymous dick they want to any website in the MindGeek dugout. And they own a LOT of them. Have you ever fired a few potential heirs into a sock while watching YouPorn, PornHub, Xtube, Redtube, Extremetube, or SpankWire? You just made MindGeek even richer, because they own all those sites, plus about a hundred more.

Joey DeVilla

All of which are tabbed on your computer, right now.

So how is it that MindGeek has avoided the fates of Napster and Pirate Bay, despite basing a huge part of their fortune on the distribution of copyrighted material? Well, the answer is pretty simple -- MindGeek also owns the movies people are pirating. See, in addition to a nine-figure loan they got from some shadowy Wall Street investor, the company grew so rich hosting ill-gotten porn that they went out and purchased every actual porn studio they could get their hands on. Brazzers, Digital Playground, Mofos, MyDirtyHobby, Twistys, Reality Kings -- all of those brands that you're pretending not to recognize are directly owned by MindGeek. They even had a working relationship with Playboy, back when that actually mattered. So they profit off the movies being filmed, and then profit off the films being pirated. It's a double penetration of profit.

Unfortunately, this arrangement isn't so great for the people actually making the porn, since their videos are all owned by the same company pirating their content (and thus getting around that pesky little problem of having to pay them anything). But they can't say a goddamn thing about it, because to do so would risk angering their bosses and lose them any chance of making any money for their videos. So any actors and actresses under the MindGeek umbrella basically have two choices -- keep their mouths shut and hope that Vivid Video signs them, or go back to serving mozzarella sticks at T.G.I. Friday's for less money than it costs to drive to work.

Mike Mozart

T.G.I. Friday's: where even the buildings look like they're ready to screw you.

So, why aren't any officials speaking out about what sounds suspiciously like a monopoly? Presumably because ... it's porn. Nobody wants to touch it. No presidential candidate is going to start yelling about how the hardcore porn industry needs more regulation, although there is no denying it would be a pretty bold platform.