In brief
- OnlyFans is a subscription site known for adult content.
- It follows Twitter in enabling NFT profile pictures.
What do you get when you combine NSFW with NFTs? OnlyFans.
OnlyFans, a platform that connects content creators with paying subscribers, said Thursday that its users can now use verified Ethereum NFTs in their profile images, according to a report from Reuters. Creators who do so will receive an Ethereum symbol to show that they own the asset.
NFTs are blockchain-based deeds of ownership that are often connected to digital images. They became huge business in 2021, as celebrities used them to convey status and artists found new ways to monetize their work. For example, OpenSea, the largest NFT trading platform, is valued at $13.3 billion according to the firm's own estimates following its Series C raise.
The idea of digital ownership is central to a Web3 vision of the world in which decentralized networks allow people to trade value without control by a single entity. But it's also important to OnlyFans, a Web2 company whose business model has at times put it at odds with the traditional financial system.
"Our mission is to empower creators to own their full potential," CEO Amrapali Gan told Reuters. "This feature is the first step in exploring the role that NFTs can play on our platform."
After its launch in 2016, OnlyFans became a bastion for adult models, many looking to take their act direct to audiences and cut out (at least some of) the middlemen. Similar to Patreon, OnlyFans takes a cut of the action in exchange for use of the platform. Former adult industry star (and Dogecoin fan) Mia Khalifa and topless entertainer Blac Chyna are some of OnlyFan's top-earning creators.
But the site has worked to shed its pornographic image. Back in August, it said it would ban "sexually explicit materials," laying the blame on stodgy "banking partners and payment providers"—the same groups that began cutting off funds to Pornhub in 2020. After an outcry, it walked back the ban.
Nonetheless, the company, which Gan took over in December after a 15-month stint as chief marketing and communications officer, has been playing up its non-nude content. Its Twitter page includes live sessions from musician NEVRMIND, cosplay tutorials, and fashion tips from a designer. Of course, it still pushes hard on sex appeal with suggestive photos and videos.
Another major social media site already allows verified NFTs for profile pics: Twitter brought the assets to the site in January. Meanwhile, Reddit is working on a similar feature, and Instagram is also "actively exploring" NFTs.