Pornography laws by region

The production and distribution of pornography are economic activities of some importance. The exact size of the economy of pornography and the influence that it plays in political circles are matter of controversy.

United States

Main article: Pornography in the United States

A few large companies operating out of Southern California's San Fernando Valley are responsible for much of the pornography produced in the United States. The distribution of pornography changed radically after the 1980s, with videotape and cable television largely displacing X-rated theaters. Video distribution in turn is in the process of being replaced by DVD (and Internet distribution for niche markets). Distribution of pornography is a large industry that involves major entertainment companies such as Time Warner (which profits from pornography through its cable channels, and in-room movies provided by hotel chains).

Men in heterosexual pornography tend to be older than the females and are often heavily muscled, whereas men in gay pornography are, on the average, younger. Gay actors, though, can range from slim and androgynous ("twinks") to very large and extremely hairy ("bears"). American pornography movies often attempt to promote pornographic stars, and the boxes for video tapes tend to be extremely gaudy. Plot in pornographic movies has diminished constantly over the last three decades and is now generally minimal. There are, however, some pornographic movies called couples films that are deliberately made for the female and/or heterosexual couple market, and these have more elements of plot in them as well as a generally more romantic treatment of the sexual aspects.

Pornography generates billions of dollars in sales in the United States alone, and economists have suggested that it has now gotten to the point where the outlawing of the industry, which has been tried on many occasions, could have a major negative economic impact upon the country, and a prohibition-style legislated ban might spark a rise in organized crime.

Europe

European hardcore pornography is dominated by a few pan-European producers and distributors, the most notable of which is the Private Media Group. Most European countries also have local pornography producers. Hungary is a haven for European pornography producers with an ample supply of beautiful and young female performers and liberal pornography laws. Women in European pornography typically have a so-called "more natural" look than in American pornography, with less emphasis on breast implants. The once popular style of Euro-chic pornography represented by directors Lasse Braun, Joe d'Amato, and Jean Rollin has lost ground and the Pierre Woodman style of video porn now attracts a larger audience. A few directors like Luca Damiano, Mario Salieri, and Alain Payet continue with the older cinematographic and dramatic styles that often distinguish European pornography from that of other cultures.

In the UK, British-made pornography tends to focus on a rough-and-ready semi-amateur look rather than the more stylized look of mainland European pornography. Producers such as Ben Dover concentrate on producing "girl-next-door" or "candid" material. Some British pornography concentrates on sexual fetishism, particularly erotic spanking and rubber fetishism.

Asia

The three main producers of pornography in Asia are Japan, Hong Kong, and Thailand. Japan has a large pornography industry (see Pornography in Japan) which features more natural looking women usually wearing little makeup servicing multiple men who tend to be anonymous. Women in some Asian pornography often act as if the sexual act was painful. In Japan, fetish pornography has a great variety, ranging from well-known bukkake to tamakeri. Hong Kong and Thailand produces much print pornography but less video. The men in Thai pornography tend to be younger than in Japanese or American pornography.

Turkey

In the Islamic World, production of pornography seems to be limited due to social pressure rather than legal regulations. Turkey, with its deeply-rooted secular attitudes towards Islam, is an exception. After a long period of producing Italian-inspired softcore comedies in 1970s, the first hardcore film Öyle Bir Kadın Ki was legally distributed in 1979, followed by many more until the 1980 coup d'état, which strictly prohibited graphic sex in cinema. In the late 1990s, Turkish pornography lived a relatively humble revival, producing cheap material of much lower quality. Contemporary producers of Turkish porn (e.g. Trimax) are centred in Germany, although they still recruit their performers from Turkey.

Canada

Canada has previously seen a major court case where writings about child porn were deemed to not be illegal. Certain communities such as Medicine Hat have seen divisive battles where restrictions have been placed on the sale of pornography. In Medicine Hat Jim Ogston led an unsuccessful battle against the new restrictions for businesses to have the right to sell pornography.

The Canadian porn industry is mainly situated in Montréal, Québec, the third largest porn producing city in the world after Los Angeles and Amsterdam.