Tumblr’s porn content may cause Yahoo some problems

One of the many reasons why Tumblr is really popular among the youth are the options you get to put up a variety of content which is artistic or expressive in nature. That content can be pornographic as well, which might be a problem for Yahoo, who is thinking of buying the blogging platform.

While the web giant wants to take over Tumblr because of the hold it will have on the youth market, the existence of porn on Tumblr may be a problem for them. The Tumblr’s Terms of Service is an interesting read. It states that they are “a global platform for creativity and self-expression, Tumblr is deeply committed to supporting and protecting freedom of speech.”

What to do with the porn Tumblr blogs?

While it has no problems with sexual content, it makes it clear that such content should be marked NSFW (Not Safe for Work). It also draws the line on hosting sexually explicit videos. Other forms of content that Tumblr discourages on its platform is content dealing with malicious bigotry, harm to minors, promotion or glorification of self harm and gore or mutilation.

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In the recent years, some of the blogs hosted on Tumblr have been shut down, some of these were popular porn sites on the platform. The rationale given for these decisions were that these sites violated the company’s policy on spam. 

Yahoo’s clear rationale behind wanting to take over Tumblr is the size of the audience that uses the platform. That in turn gives a huge potential for advertising revenue, that the company is keen on getting into. Yahoo, itself, is also very clear in the way it deals with adult content. In it’s Terms of Service, the company clearly states that users may come across adult content while using their services. 

However, Yahoo has always been keen on getting new advertisers to their products. Keeping in mind that most advertisers shy away from sites which host a lot of sexually explicit content, it is hard to see the future looking any brighter for any pornographer to put up his content once Yahoo takes over (if at all) the popular blogging platform.

At the same time, Yahoo will have to tread a delicate line, while trying to monitor such content. The cornerstone of Tumblr’s popularity is the freedom of expression that it affords its users and an environment of minimal restrictions. Yahoo will definitely have to keep that in mind before making any decision about pornographic or adult content on Tumblr.