XBIZ Abandons London for Berlin

XBIZ, the LA-based organiser of adult industry trade shows and networking events, has announced it will no longer run its European show in London: the 2016 XBIZ Europe event will take place in Berlin instead.

The show has taken place in London for the past five years, bringing together adult industry participants from around the world to talk business, regulation and politics. London seemed like a perfect choice, explains XBIZ CEO Alec Helmy:

“Back in 2011, we chose London for a number of reasons, from its prime geographic location for international travel to its reputation as a world-class city full of great attractions, not to mention UK is one of our top countries here on XBIZ.net in terms of member demographics. For these and other good reasons, we felt London was the right destination at the time.”

But the increasingly moralistic, censorious nature of the UK has forced XBIZ to reconsider. As this blog has often pointed out, the UK stands almost alone in Europe in its determination to stamp out sexual expression. The UK’s legitimate adult industry is virtually extinct, as operators have closed their doors or moved overseas. This has resulted in job losses as well as tax losses for the exchequer.

Now, Helmy says, London is no longer an ideal place to hold the event, for a variety of reasons.

“… we didn’t foresee just how unfriendly UK would become toward adult. From ATVOD (previous content police) fining adult webmasters for “non-compliance” and scaring many out of business to radical feminists picketing our venues and local media’s negative tone toward adult, the climate became more and more difficult as each year passed. And now with OFCOM (equivalent of FTC) taking full charge of content regulation, the general consensus is that things are going to get even bleaker.

As much as we’ve felt a sense of duty to empower the UK industry by returning each year, it’s become too unwise for us to continue doing so.

So, we’re packing up and relocating the conference to another one of Europe’s top destinations for both business and pleasure, Berlin.”

While XBIZ’s decision is sad for those of us fighting for sexual liberty in the UK, we can hardly blame them for choosing Berlin over London. British culture has become increasingly hostile to sexual freedom, and to free expression in general. Both the Conservative and Labour parties are unrelentingly hostile to sexual expression, so even a change of government would be unlikely to alter our censorious course; and the chance of a Brexit means we may revert even further back towards our old “No Sex Please, We’re British” island status.

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9 thoughts on “XBIZ Abandons London for Berlin

  1. British culture as a whole has never been hostile to sexual freedom, and to free expression in general but it been the Torys/NuLabour and the media who have been trying to turn it hostile

    also I was told by someone that if we vote to leave it will save are freedoms and end “No Sex Please, We’re British” island status somehow?

    1. also I was told by someone that if we vote to leave it will save are freedoms and end “No Sex Please, We’re British” island status somehow?

      Yes. Was that the same person that would have us believe that Santa Claus and The easter Bunny is real and pigs may fly? The third is real. Theyre called police helicopters

  2. Ahhh yes, the city of London, attracting the worst of financial investment, the unregulated playground of the super-rich, pricing real Londoners out of the market. But someone mention “sex” and the forces of so-called morality suddenly find a voice.

  3. The point of the Brexit is so the government doesnt have to answer to Europe in bringing in ISP blocks to enforce its age verification and ringfencing of the internet. We’ve alread seen Juncker tell Cameron that he cant do as he pleases.

    Even though i was corrected that Cameron wants to be in the EU I am not fooled by this. I htink he is gonna pull his mask and cape off at the last minute and show his true colours. I feel cameron is being very Machiavellian about this

    Dont be fooled about them taking away your free porn. This isnt about that. You keep watching the porn. they’ll be watching what you watch while snooping on you

  4. As I may have said before, it seems the main demand of all these Brexit MPs and the likes of the Daily Mail is that we should be free from regulations and ‘state interference’. But in the case of Adult, these same people are demanding government restrictions that nobody else in Europe is the slightest bit interested in. Of course there’s plenty of our pro EU MPs and journalists who are pro censorship too. Aren’t we lucky.

  5. Sadly, the relocation of XBIZ from London to Berlin is likely to be portrayed by the radfem Walter Mittys as a victory for their ragtag movement, rather than a sign that they’re mere useful idiots for the pro-censorship lobby in Westminster.

  6. Personally, I can feel the attraction of Berlin for XBIZ; given the lack of social mobility, the culture of creeping censorship, and the wholesale destruction of our heritage at the altar of redevelopment in Britain, I’ve had serious thoughts about moving there myself!

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