MindGeek CEO and COO Resign After Monetizing Sexual Exploitation, Abuse of Minors

Published: June 29, 2022

MindGeek CEO and COO Resign After Monetizing Sexual Exploitation, Abuse of Minors

By Movieguide® Staff

The CEO and COO of MindGeek, the parent company of the adult content site Pornhub, announced their resignation last week.

In a breaking report published by the New Yorker, titled “The Fight To Hold Pornhub Accountable,” investigations revealed that MindGeek promoted “graphic” sexual abuse content, including rape and sex trafficking, on Pornhub.

CEO Feras Antoon and COO David Tassillo and their company MindGeek first came under fire after the landmark article published in the New York Times by investigative journalist Nicolas Kristof in an expose titled “The Children of Pornhub.”

According to the New Yorker, total users on MindGeek’s adult sites skyrocketed in 2020 to 4.5 billion visits each month. However, following Kristof’s report and legal action from victims, Mastercard, Visa, Comcast, and other companies cut ties with MindGeek speaking out against Pornhub’s monetization of sexual exploitation and abuse.

Movieguide® previously reported:

Comcast joins a growing list of companies who desire to end the sexual abuse perpetuated through MindGeek and Pornhub, including Visa, Mastercard, Paypal, Discover, and more.

“Evidence continues to grow, shedding light on MindGeek’s and the pornography industry’s predatory practices and apathy for the proliferation of child sex abuse material, sex trafficking, and non-consensual videos and images on its sites,” the NCOSE states. “Survivors bear witness as to how Pornhub monetized their abuse by leaving crime scene footage live on their sites after repeated requests for removal, even featuring and promoting unlawful content to drive more viewers to their sites.”

Despite their resignation as CEO and COO, Antoon and Tassillo will remain shareholders of MindGeek, according to Forbes.

Exodus Cry, a non-profit organization that fights against sex trafficking and sexual exploitation, noted the milestone on their social media.

“MindGeek/Pornhub CEO, Feras Antoon, and COO, David Tasillo, have been at the helm of Pornhub for the past decade, all while scores of criminal cases have been piling up against the mega porn site. Their resignation is a win in the continued fight to hold Pornhub accountable, but these men must also be held responsible,” they wrote. “We believe this milestone is the result of YOUR voices boldly proclaiming the truth to the world and supporting this fight to see Pornhub brought to justice for its blatant criminal complicity.”