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Govt. Funding Axed for Kink.com


Adult fetish website Kink.com had been receiving government funding to the tune of nearly $47,000 for employee training up until April -- but the state of California yanked further financing when it discovered Kink.com was in the porn business.

The website, which is listed with the state under parent company Cybernet Entertainment, had been granted funding for employee training for the past three years. In April the funding was abruptly yanked with word that the company will no longer be able to rely on the subsidized support.

"We were informed by [nonprofit media services organization] the Bay Area Video Coalition that funding would be cut off for training, and that any classes already in session would have to end at the end of the week," Kink.com director of communications Ilana Rothman told XBIZ, an adult industry trade publication. "We were up-front with the application process and did not hide [the fact that Cybernet was an adult company]."

Rothman said the training money was used primarily in production and technology departments for training in graphic design, programming, animation, and editing.

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Reader Comments
  • Name: Andrew
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 7:14:00 PM
    Hometown: Tulsa

    Comment:

    If you hate it here so much why not leave and go to Saudi Arabia?

  • Name: queerplanet
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 3:38:00 PM
    Hometown: earth

    Comment:

    Well we fund the US military which is the kinkiest group of people on the planet. They dress up in drag, torture people, and even get into snuff all for fun and profit.

  • Name: Nick
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 11:38:00 AM
    Hometown: Broomfield CO

    Comment:

    This just goes to show how biased society is towards anything that is outside of the mainstream. The question becomes whether or not any other porn production company lost its funding or did Kink loose it because they are a fetish porn company.

  • Name: capecodguy
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 9:33:00 AM
    Hometown: hyannis

    Comment:

    They should be made to pay it back. Buying porn is a luxury, not a necessity. Come on now.Sheeeesh.

  • Name: dennisctc
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 6:14:00 AM
    Hometown: Shamokin PA

    Comment:

    Why is an almost bankrupt gov't providing ANY money to private corporations, regardless of their business. No wonder CA is in the mess it's in!!!

  • Name: dennisctc
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 6:14:00 AM
    Hometown: Shamokin PA

    Comment:

    Why is an almost bankrupt gov't providing ANY money to private corporations, regardless of their business. No wonder CA is in the mess it's in!!!

  • Name: Greg aka splerk
    Date posted: 7/6/2009 5:01:00 AM
    Hometown: San Diego, CA

    Comment:

    Well CA should have done it's homework before throwing money to just anyone. Maybe if they research where OUR money is going to, CA wouldn't have the HUGE financial problem it has. The 7th of this month I will find out if I get an IOU or not. Yes the Porn Industry makes a lot of money, so why would they need funding from the government anyways. Get a lone from the bank like everyone else. Good for CA for stopping a scam even though it is too little too late.

  • Name: dave
    Date posted: 7/5/2009 10:59:00 PM
    Hometown: sacramento

    Comment:

    Why is people are reading this as bailout money when it's training/development of technical (computer) skills? Yeah, ok, so they may learn how to enlarge a penis in a movie...but can't be an easy thing to do. And isn't the porn industry a large tax base? The porn industry is (thanks to your buying it) the reason we use blue-ray, to get those hi-def shots of the moments you love--digitally enhanced.

  • Name: Jack
    Date posted: 7/5/2009 10:41:00 PM
    Hometown: Sparta, NJ

    Comment:

    It's quite a pickle. On the one hand, there is the issue of equal protection. On the other, I suppose the best interests of the community are taken into consideration. Considering California's budget mess, however, I guess the state can cut off whatever funding it decides to. The article doesn't say whether "stimulus money" was being used for this.

  • Name: dale
    Date posted: 7/5/2009 8:01:00 PM
    Hometown: troy

    Comment:

    The porn industry makes money , buttloads(excuse the pun) of money. How can anyone justify a bailout for the kink industry when porn is a multi billion dollar business?. I just love how our tax dollars are secretly being used to fund things like this.

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