Craigslist is dumping its "erotic services" ads in the next week and will replace them with an adult services section where the ads are manually approved and cost $10, the Los Angeles Times reports. Craigslist won't be accepting new erotic services ads, starting today. This is all in the wake of the so-called "Craigslist Killer" and threats from three attorneys general (including Missouri's Chris Koster) to clean up the ads or face legal action. So Craigslist is changing the name, getting paid double and peeping the ads? Everybody wins.
After the jump, the full statement from Craigslist:
STRIKING A NEW BALANCEAs of today for all US sites, postings to the "erotic services"
category will no longer be accepted, and in 7 days the category will be
removed.
Also effective today for all US sites, a new category entitled
"adult services" will be opened for postings by legal adult service
providers. Each posting to this new category will be manually reviewed
before appearing on the site, to ensure compliance with craigslist
posting guidelines and terms of use. New postings will cost $10, but
once approved, will be eligible for reposting at $5.
Unsurprisingly, but completely contrary to some of the
sensationalistic "journalism" we've seen these past few weeks, the
record is clear that use of craigslist classifieds is associated with
, let alone rates of violent crime pertaining to American society as a whole. The relative safety of craigslist compared to print classifieds is likely due to some combination of:
* Measures such as blocking, screening, and telephone verification
* Community moderation via flagging system
* Electronic trail ensures violent criminals are quickly caught
* Personal safety tips prominently posted
* Unusually high level of cooperation with law enforcement
Community moderation as exemplified by our flagging system is
arguably the most successful system ever conceived for eliminating
inappropriate activity from a massive internet community. Working in
tandem with various other protective technologies, it is an inescapable
force to be reckoned with for anyone set on abusing free internet
communications across a broad array of posting types.
However, with respect to this new paid category for advertising by
legal businesses, we will experiment with some of the methods
traditionally employed in paid print classifieds.
We'd like to thank everyone who has provided helpful input over the past few weeks, all of which we've closely considered:
* Our users, whose suggestions have shaped every aspect of craigslist
* Attorneys General, who have provided valuable constructive criticism
* Law Enforcement officers nationwide, who have been hugely supportive
* Legal businesses concerned at their right to advertise being questioned
* EFF and other legal experts defending free speech and Internet law
We are optimistic that the new balance struck today will be an
acceptable compromise from the perspective of these constituencies, and
for the hugely diverse US communities that value and rely upon
craigslist.
Note: Our announced intention to contribute 100% of net revenues for
the "erotic services" category to charity has been fulfilled, and will
continue to be fulfilled, notwithstanding <
> in this regard. However, in light of today's changes, and to avoid any
future misunderstanding, we are making no representation today
regarding how revenue from the "adult services" category will be used.
Our overall commitment to philanthropy remains, and craigslist will
carry on with its charitable initiatives as it sees fit.
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