Sale of grownup web site comes after controversy over internet hosting of kid abuse materials and different non-consenual content material.

The operator of Pornhub, the controversial however wildly fashionable grownup web site, has been offered to a Canadian personal fairness agency.

Ottawa-based Moral Capital Companions (ECP) stated on Thursday it had purchased MindGeek, the corporate that owns Pornhub and several other different pornographic web sites.

The phrases of the deal weren’t publicly disclosed.

ECP chair Rocco Meliambro stated the fairness agency was targeted on figuring out properties with the potential to “create engaging returns over a compelling time horizon”.

“We consider the grownup leisure business is being influenced by evolving public views and regulatory approaches, and the time is acceptable for evolving this enterprise,” Meliambro stated in a press release.

Pornhub, probably the most visited websites on the planet, has attracted controversy lately amid claims its house owners have profited off youngster intercourse abuse materials, rape movies, revenge porn and different non-consensual content material.

Mastercard and Visa stopped processing funds for Pornhub in 2020 after a New York Occasions op-ed described the positioning as being “infested with rape movies”, a transfer welcomed by anti-pornography advocates however criticised by grownup performers.

MindGeek, which was based in Montreal however is now primarily based in Luxembourg, has been the topic of a number of lawsuits from girls who accused the corporate of knowingly internet hosting sexual content material involving them with out their consent.

In 2021, MindGeek settled a lawsuit in California introduced by 50 girls who alleged they’d been victimised by the positioning.

MindGeek has stated that it has a zero-tolerance stance in the direction of non-consensual content material and is weak to unhealthy actors importing content material similar to different on-line platforms. The corporate has launched a number of measures to deal with the proliferation of unlawful content material, together with verification for customers who add materials to the positioning.

MindGeek’s chief government and chief working officer stepped down final 12 months, whereas remaining shareholders of the corporate.

ECP founding companion Sarah Bain stated she was assured MindGeek operates “with belief and security on the forefront of the whole lot they do”.

“We shall be participating with stakeholders, together with content material creators, governments and business to deal with the misalignment between how MindGeek operates and what the general public perceives about this business and these platforms,” Bain stated.

“We are going to work with the workforce to make sure their dedication to belief and security is communicated clearly with all stakeholders and the general public.”

A documentary about Pornhub, Cash Shot: The Pornhub Story, debuted this week on Netflix, reviving debate concerning the web site and the regulation of sexual content material on-line.