Anti-porn: Phone firms soften stance

"The major American cellular carriers have so far been adamant in their refusal to sell pornography from the same content menus on which they sell ring tones and video games. But there are signs that they may soften their stance," the New York Times reports. The softening appears to coincide with the phone content-rating system the cellphone industry is developing (see 5/6/05). The industry is in a tight spot between not wanting to alienate the parent market and not wanting to walk away from revenues from porn content (in Europe, "consumers already spend tens of millions of dollars a year on phone-based pornography, so sales are expected to grow with the uptake of video-enabled phones in the US). The Times says children's advocacy groups are mobilizing.