Blog changes; DOMA/Prop 8

So this post probably should have been about the joyous news about DOMA/Prop 8.  And I’ll get to that.  But not long after that news, I got this email from Google:

Important Update to Adult Content Policy on Blogger
You are receiving this message because you are the admin of a blog hosted on Blogger which is identified to have Adult content.
Please be advised that on June 30th 2013, we will be updating our Content Policy to strictly prohibit the monetization of Adult content on Blogger. After June 30th 2013, we will be enforcing this policy and will remove blogs which are adult in nature and are displaying advertisements to adult websites.
If your adult blog currently has advertisements which are adult in nature, you should remove them as soon as possible as to avoid any potential Terms of Service violation and/or content removals.
Sincerely,
The Blogger Team

So this sucks.  What it means is that I have to remove all advertising.  Now, in a way, I don’t mind too much.  Frankly, I didn’t make a lot of money from my affiliates (maybe $200 USD in about 2-3 years).  I just liked supporting them, as I do feel they sell good products.  So this isn’t about my personal monetary loss.

Really, it’s mostly about the foreshadowing.  This seems more like a first step from google, if you ask me.  I get a sense they’re going to put a gradual squeeze on all adult oriented blogs.  It’s not a good feeling.

This leaves me with a few thoughts for the long term.

  1. Do I move this blog?  I know blogspot is rapidly becoming considered a bit of a dinosaur in the blog world, but I have to admit that I still like it.  Tumblr, while good for pic posts, isn’t as convenient for longer posts with themes and text.  And I’ve never really investigated other blog platforms to know much, or do self-hosting. 
  2. Do I just quit blogging?  I still don’t plan on that at the moment, but as time goes on, and google adds more and more restrictions, I may not find it worth my time.  And to be honest, I’m not feeling as personally interested in blogging anymore.  No special reason, although I do have some changes in my personal life (good ones, I assure you) that I’m actually getting more into now and taking up more of my time.  So it’s a possibility in the future.
For now, I’ll just remove the advertising.  But be braced for anything in the future.  In the meantime, if anyone has any ideas for ways, programs, or self hosting a blog that is gay adult content, advice would be appreciated.

I kind of want to hear from you, the readers, about how you feel about this.  Plus, I’ve been very busy these last few weeks, so I’m going to take a week off from the blog and post again on Saturday.  This will also give time for people to read this post, and send me their thoughts/advice.

*     *     *
So very happy news about DOMA/Prop 8!  And here in California, it’s obviously great news.  Now my BF and I will have to decide if we want to marry.  It’s probably a given that we will, but it’s a matter of when.  To be honest, in the interest of privacy, I probably won’t be able to state it here if we do or not, and when.  But it is something on our minds.
And while these are both great strides, let’s not forget that there are still 30 or so states that still ban gay marriage, so there is still much work to do.  But the cracks are appearing in the dam, so to speak.

One Reply to “Blog changes; DOMA/Prop 8”

  1. HI, long time fan of your blog. I just wanted to say I’m sorry google has seen fit to put the squeeze on adult sites and hopefully it isn’t the first step as you say. That said I hope your blog survives in some format as I am a huge fan of the work you do. Also good luck on the marriage front if/when you decide to do it.

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