Jan 27, 2023 3:29 PM PST

BARCELONA, Spain — Sabien DeMonia is celebrating her XBIZ Exec Award win for Brand Ambassador of the Year.
 
“I’ve been nominated for XBIZ so many times; I don’t even know how many times. I’m so excited to win an XBIZ Award finally. It’s the first time in XBIZ history that a creator got awarded in the Executive Awards. For me, the biggest highlight is proving that we creators know how to be all about business and that this award is proof of that,” DeMonia said.

The 2023 XBIZ Exec Awards were announced January 14; click here for a full list of winners.

Follow Sabien DeMonia on Twitter and find her social media links here.

Jan 27, 2023 3:27 PM PST

LOS ANGELES — John Legendary is celebrating winning at the 2023 XBIZ Awards for Best Vignette Sex Scene.

“It’s incredible to be an XBIZ Award winner, and I can’t wait to get my award. I’m so glad that I was cast in this scene, and it will definitely go down in history,” Legendary said.

The 2023 XBIZ Awards were announced January 15 at the Hollywood Palladium; click here for a full list of winners.

Follow Legendary on Twitter.

NEW YORK — CockyBoys has released the sixth and final scene from the Jake Jaxson-directed title, “Happy Endings.”

The scene features a six-man orgy starring CockyBoys exclusives Greyson Myles, Lane Colten, Trevor Brooks and Tristan Hunter, along with Cody Seiya and Shae Reynolds.

“Since we have been celebrating our 15-year anniversary, I originally wanted to make a feature that was a nod to some of the past films that have been a big part of our success over the years, like ‘The Haunting’, ‘Answered Prayers’, and ‘All Saints,'” Jaxson said. “These were projects I loved making, and in many ways defined CockyBoys as a studio.”

The director went on to praise his cast.

“I did not realize how delightful it would be working with a completely new group of guys — all relatively new to the industry, none having performed in a studio feature before, but all completely committed and dedicated to doing their best,” he said. “In the process, this cast delivered connected, sensual, and passionate performances that have exceeded all my expectations — I honesty could not be more happy and proud of what we made, and I feel confident in saying there is nothing like ‘Happy Endings’ in the gay porn canon.”

All six scenes are streaming on CockyBoys.

LONDON — Members of the ruling Conservative Party in the U.K. are challenging Prime Minister Rishi Sunak by drafting new amendments meant to strengthen the controversial Online Safety Bill by increasing liability for platforms hosting adult content.

The news — framed this week by Bloomberg.com as “a new rebellion over online porn age verification” — has heightened the perception that the Tory PM, who succeeded the disgraced Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, is not a strong party leader.

Bloomberg also reported that earlier this month, anti-porn Tory MPs threatened a rebellion that “prompted Sunak to cave in to demands for Big Tech directors to face jail if they fail to remove harmful content.”

The Online Safety Bill has been universally criticized by free speech and digital rights advocates for its arbitrary and expansive definition of what constitutes “harmful content.” More moderate members of the Conservative Party have also criticized the bill for its potential to erode freedom of expression and privacy.

Repeated U-Turns Among Tories

As XBIZ reported, the Online Safety Bill has been stuck in conceptual chaos since its very beginnings, with various unclear goals such as “protecting children,” “outlawing hate speech,” “cleaning up the internet” and other fuzzy notions popularized through various media panics concerning online content.

The bill was originally drafted in May 2021, but was repeatedly delayed awaiting modifications prompted by the serious concerns of free speech advocates, lobbyists for platforms, and politicians across the spectrum. It was reintroduced in late November 2022, but that version met the ire of the anti-porn MPs, who have staged the “rebellions” mentioned by Bloomberg.

The November version, the New Statesman’s Sarah Dawood explained at the time, would have seen a subtler interpretation of the “legal but harmful” aspect of the bill, which before then “would have put a duty on Big Tech companies to stop the proliferation of dangerous content that is not illegal, such as misogyny, some online bullying and content promoting eating disorders.”

The “legal but harmful” formulation — essentially a vague carve-out of free speech — originates in a rhyming expression taught in U.S. law schools: “lawful but awful,” an imprecise, catchall label that encompasses threats and violence but also most visual expressions of sexuality, including all pornography.

The amendments being drafted this week by the anti-porn MPs, according to Bloomberg.com, will require that all porn websites implement age verification systems within six months of the bill becoming law. The new amendments seek to go back to the spirit of the pre-November version and are likely to be debated in a month.

“What we need is an emphatic timetable and clear cut commitment to hard-gated mandatory age verification,” Conservative peer James Bethell told Bloomberg. “The current provisions are a kumbaya aspiration that leaves open too many loopholes, no enforcement and no timetable.”

The Online Safety Bill is set to pass through the House of Lords on Monday.

Main Image: U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Seth Gamble took home his second XBIZ Male Performer of the Year Award last week in Hollywood.

The director/producer/writer/performer also shared the awards for Best All-Sex Sex Scene with Vanna Bardot for “Money,” a scene he wrote and directed; and for Best Feature Movie Sex Scene with Maitland Ward and Mick Blue for their scene in Kayden Kross’ “Deeper.”

“I want to thank every director I’ve ever gotten to work with in my career,” Gamble said during his acceptance speech. “Thank you so much — you make me a better performer. It means the world. Thank you for helping guide me throughout my career.”

He also highlighted his female co-stars, saying, “You women put your bodies out there, every single day. Thank you for trusting me to work with you and give you the best scene possible.”

Gamble was nominated for a total of 27 XBIZ Awards at last week’s ceremony. In addition to the three categories he won, he was nominated an additional four times for Best Feature Movie Sex Scene and two more times for Best All-Sex Sex Scene. 

His debut feature as a filmmaker, Wicked Pictures’ Deranged, picked up six nominations, including Feature Movie of the Year, personal nominations for Feature Director of the Year and Best Screenplay, and nods for Best Art Direction, Best Editing for Claudia Ross, and Best Feature Movie Sex Scene for Lily Larimar, Jane Wilde, and Mick Blue. He also scored a Featurette of the Year nomination for co-directing “Serial Breeder” with Bree Mills for Adult Time.

As a performer, he picked up one Best Lead Acting nom for “Spideypool XXX: An Axel Braun Parody” (Wicked Pictures), and three Best Supporting Acting nods for “Drift” (Deeper), “Going Up” (Lust Cinema), and “Stars” (Adult Time), respectively. 

“I’m so proud of what we’ve all accomplished with these movies. The experiences were amazing,” he said of his feature work. “Reprising my role as Deadpool was a blast, and getting a Best Lead Acting nomination for it was icing on the cake. This was my fourth time getting the opportunity to dig into being the Merc with a Mouth and I have to thank Axel Braun for once again inspiring everybody with his signature attention to detail and by bringing together such an amazing cast and crew of people.”

He was also nominated for seven more scenes in which he performed — three for Best Featurette Sex Scene, three for Best Career-First Performance Sex Scene, and one for Best Gonzo Sex Scene.

Six features in which he performed, including all four that garnered him acting noms, as well as “Dark Is The Night” (Wicked Noir) and “Hysteria” (Wicked Pictures), received nominations for Feature Movie of the Year.

“As I enter my seventeenth year in this industry, I absolutely can’t thank XBIZ enough for this incredible acknowledgement of my work as a performer and actor,” Gamble said in a statement after the awards show. “I’m particularly grateful to receive the Male Performer of the Year award a second time, as this year really gave me unprecedented opportunities to show how versatile, reliable, and adaptable I am as an actor and performer.”

The 2023 XBIZ Awards were announced January 15 at the Hollywood Palladium; click here for a full list of winners.

Follow Seth Gamble on Twitter.

LOS ANGELES — Eye of Love has partnered with Patti Stanger for a Valentine’s Day giveaway promotion.

“All eyes are on love this Valentine’s Day and the experts at Eye of Love and Patti Stanger are spreading love just in time for the holiday,” said a rep.

The giveaway, now live on the EyeOfLove.com website, includes a pair of diamond earrings and Matchmaker items.

The winner will be announced Feb. 9 via Instagram.

Matchmaker, the rep explained, features “high-quality, high-potency pheromones that pleasantly awaken senses to make you feel good inside and out and attract those around you.”

Eyes of Love VP of Sales Jacqui Rubinoff said, “We want everyone to have the opportunity to look and feel their best this season and experience the magic of pheromones.”

To enter visit EyeOfLove.com.

JACKSON, Miss. — A Republican state senator in Mississippi introduced a copycat bill patterned after the Louisiana state law that mandates age verification for websites featuring pornographic content.

Sen. Nicole Boyd (R-Oxford) introduced Senate Bill 2346, which was approved by the Mississippi Senate Judiciary B committee yesterday.

Boyd’s SB 2346 would “hold liable any commercial entity that disseminates pornographic material and doesn’t perform ‘reasonable’ age verification,” local news site The Center Square reported.

SB 2346 would “exempt news gathering organizations and internet service providers from liability under the bill,” The Center Square noted.

During the committee hearing Boyd admitted she had met with Louisiana Senate President Pro Tem Beth Mizell (R-Franklinton) to discuss Louisiana’s recent Act 440, that state’s age verification law championed by religious anti-porn therapist and legislator Laurie Schlegel (R-Matairie).

Boyd explicitly pointed out that she modeled Mississippi’s SB 2346 after the Louisiana legislation. The senator claimed that her bill “would require the sites to delete private information after access has been granted to protect against data breaches,” The Center Square reported.

“We don’t let people get alcohol or cigarettes before the age of 21,” Boyd told the committee lifting up her iPhone. “Unfortunately, this phone here — your teenagers and younger children have access to pornography at their fingertips. I was shocked at the prevalence of pornography among our teen population.”

Boyd has built a reputation in Mississippi as a “women, children and families” GOP expert and was recently tasked by the governor with “mapping out what the next chapter of the pro-life agenda should be,” Christian news website the Daily Journal reported.

A Tsunami of Republican Copycat Bills

Last week, Arkansas state senators Tyler Dees (R-Siloam Springs) and Jim Petty (R-Van Buren) introduced another copycat bill, Senate Bill 66, requiring age verification before “entering a website offering pornography.”

The bill includes the senators’ definition of what kinds of material would constitute “pornography,” and mandates that “any website with over 23.33% of its material meeting the pornography description” institute age verification.

The Mississippi bill is heading to the State Senate floor, where it will have to be approved before Feb. 9 to be sent to the House.

BURBANK, Calif. — Doc Johnson debuted more than 70 new products at the Adult Novelty Manufacturer’s Expo (ANME) in Burbank last week.

Included were products from Doc Johnson’s partnerships with Fort Troff, MyFirmtech, Awkward Essentials and Motorbunny.

“All of our new release announcements were met with great enthusiasm from both distributors and retailers alike,” VP of Sales and Marketing Scott Watkins said. “We’re excited to bring all the new additions to Doc Johnson signature products, such as Goodhead and our new lines, Ritual and In A Bag, to shelves. Equally, we’re also overjoyed with the incredible response to our new partnerships with Fort Troff and My Firmtech.”

Among the featured products were three new additions to the lines of products molded directly from stars’ bodies. In the Main Squeeze line of hard-case strokers: Ms. Puiyi, Skye Blue, and Aidra Fox will all be released in the next few months. Each of their molds will be available in the Signature Strokers line as well.

Alex Jones, Quinton James, and Owen Gray are each molded for ULTRASKYN Signature Cocks, and Owen Grey is the first-ever option available in silicone as well. Natalie Mars and Lena Moon, who already have Signature Dolls, will now also be available in a Signature Cock with Penetrable Ass, budget versions of their molds.

“I’m so proud of the Doc Johnson team that worked tirelessly to make sure that this ANME could go as well as it did,” said Doc Johnson COO Chad Braverman. “Our team created a beautiful booth with many eye-catching displays that made a huge impact on our sales from the show.”

For sales inquiries, visit B2BDocJohnson or contact sales@docjohnson.com.

PARIS — Tiffany Leiddi and Dorcel brand ambassador Clara Mia topline the studio’s latest release, “Luxure: My Wife’s Whims.”

Directed by Herve Bodilis, the title also features Carollina Cherry, Ricky Mancini, Marcello Bravo, Lauren Walker, Alice Martin, James Duval, Mike Hilton, Tommy Cabrio and Yanick Shaft.

The action opens on Walker and Bravo, a couple who are “madly in love and while they have been a couple for a long time, they’ve managed to find solutions to prevent ‘routines’ from setting into their sex life,” said a rep. “What follows is a series of atmospheric and heavily art-directed sexual triads, all shot in Bodilis’ trademark style. Alice and Clara seduce a returning James, setting the stage for a B/B/G sequence featuring James, Marcello, and Carollina Cherry. After another long exercise in excitement teaming Tiffany with Yanick and Ricky, Clara brings the action to a satisfying conclusion with Tommy and Mike.”

Dorcel’s U.S. publicist, Daniel Metcalf, enthused about the series.

“‘Luxure’ has been one of Dorcel’s top-performing franchises internationally, thanks to Herve Bodilis’ artistic vision and his eye for new talent,” he said. “For ‘My Wife’s Whims,’ you might say he’s putting the tradwives phenomenon on notice. There’s no cleaning, cooking, and putting the husband’s every need first in Dorcel’s vision of equality, inclusion, and pleasure for all. Here, the men are the ones saying, ‘Darling, I’ll do anything to make you happy.'”

“Luxure: My Wife’s Whims” is available on VOD from Adult Empire and DVD from Pulse Distribution. 

Follow Mia on Twitter.

LOS ANGELES — Fan Choice Award voting is now open for the 2023 TEAs, presented by Pornhub.

The winner will be announced on March 19 at the Avalon in Hollywood, Calif.

Previous winners of the Fan Choice Award include Izzy Wilde, Khloe Kay, and Lena Moon.

The 2023 TEAs will take place March 17 and 19, with the Pre-Party on Friday night and the Awards Program on Sunday night.

“Fans, this is your time to have your voice heard,” stated TEA Executive Producer Kristel Penn. “Our Fan Choice Award winner is the only category determined by fans, so this is a good time for performers to encourage the fans to step up and support them.”

Users may only vote once and must enter three performers in any order listed on the submission form. Eligible performers must have appeared in a website or DVD release between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2022. Incomplete or spam forms will be deleted.

Users must also provide their username from a qualifying platform such as Twitter, HungAngels, ManyVids, TransErotica, Pornhub, Kink, GenderX, Transfixed, Adult Time, Evil Angel, Streamate, Chaturbate or any Grooby website. 

Fans can cast their votes here.

For more information, visit theTEAShow.com and follow them on Twitter.

Media and sponsorship opportunities should be directed to kristel@grooby.com.