Expert: Dan Pepper - 11/14/2010

Question
My husband and I have been discussing the idea of an adult website. It would contain videos of only us, give short teasers and then full videos at a fee. We reside in Georgia and are just wondering about legal issues. Are we looking at permits and copyrights? The mention of forming a corporation to protect us sounds like the way to go but are we looking at a business license? Just feeling out the idea. Any info you could give would be great, I think I might be making it more complicated than it is. Thanks

Answer
Hi Jenny,

You're looking at a number of things.  You should form a business entity that would operate your adult website, and should prepare appropriate model releases between you and your husband on the one hand, and your business entity on the other, so that the ownership of the content rests with the business entity.  In Georgia, I do not know of a separate business license to produce films.

I'd also strongly advise registering copyrights on all of your content, as well as your website.  Bear in mind that you'll need to consider compliance with applicable obscenity laws, as well as record keeping and labeling of your content pursuant to the regulations at 18 USC 2257.  Failure to comply with this federal regulation can mean a 5 year jail term, so you do NOT want to get that wrong.

It is foolish to get into this business without a competent attorney well-versed in adult entertainment law to advise you, as there are numerous risks involved.  If you'd like to discuss your situation further with us, feel free to contact me through my website at http://www.adultwebsitelawyer.com