This is a good discussion and I thonk everybody agrees the absolute exclusion of kids in any posts is the most responsible thing to do.
The discussion appears (to me) to also seek guidance on why some general kid situations arent also banned from producers even though the models and production staff are all of legal age. Prom is usually involving kids, right? I know i am opening a can of worms because I also love the messy prom dress scenes and am guilty of making them but i dont want to continue if they are also no longer acceptable media for this community. Or the re-enactment of scenes which (in their original distribution) were targeting children like YCDTOTV (which I have also produced and enjoyed others producing).
When I first read this my initial thought was how much mainstream WAM (outside of kids TV) actually is there? In the case of UK TV it doesn't seem as prevalent as it was when I was growing up in the late 90's early 00's. I can think of a handful of instances in the last few years, but either the volume of mess has been tiny, or the level of protective clothing used probably to satisfy the health and safety people has made it unwatchable (plus a load of points already made about TV producers not getting the angles or moments we want to see).
At the same time, the number of people producing content has probably increased, because the barrier to entry is so much lower now from a technology perspective, as most of us will have a video camera (sort of) in our pocket now and some of the stigma around producing adult content is lifting. There is a limitation that each scene may only be promoted once, but if there are more scenes, that's going to take up more of the forum.
The kids categorically need to be kept out. This fetish (possibly uniquely) has a problem making sure that is achieved exactly because it can be seen to have a crossover with a lot of mainstream media some of which is aimed at kids. I'd have agreed that I didn't overly see the issue with a clip of an adult being gunged with no one else in frame in any context, but the demonstration of how search engine algorithms will move this site further up the suggestions when searching something completely innocent does pose an issue. That said, I assume UMD links wouldn't be included if safe-search is on? We're a room full of people that get it, but an outsider looking in probably won't take the time to understand and jump to conclusions if they see a whole bunch of links out to clips of kids TV shows. If this weren't a fetish site, it would be seen as nostalgia. There are also other fetishes which are going have the problem of being misunderstood if time isn't taken to understand them (littles, age-play) but the link out to mainstream media isn't there.
The point on making content that uses themes which are similar to those used in kids TV shows, or certain costumes is interesting, because how far would you take it? In the most extreme interpretation I think we'd be saying most of the content on here has to go. Anything using a gunge tank or dunk tank, anything with a quiz aspect, anything with a humiliation aspect achieved using immature clothing, any clothing which looks like it's from a game show. And flipping this on it's head, it feels like some of the kids TV shows knew there was an adult audience out there so added in a bit of "something for the dads". I'm too young to have experienced the O.T.T. adult spin-off to Tizwas but I know it existed, and I'm pretty sure putting Holly Willoughby in a tiny French Maid costume at 9am on a Saturday to have cakes thrown at her wasn't strictly required.
If anything I think this is where producers and customs come to the rescue, because you can have a clip using one of these scenarios and it's rubber stamped as being produced by adults for adults without the risk of it being linked anywhere other than other adult sites. I suspect a lot of the community is going to have their exposition to this fetish linked to something they saw on TV, or did during childhood (an attractive adult being gunged on a TV show, a water fight or playing in the mud with others their age) and there is nothing wrong with wanting that situation to be replicated in a video intended for an adult audience, produced by adults, potentially with further adult twists in my opinion. If anything were to ever take this too far, I expect the community would make it known, and as that hasn't happened it isn't currently an issue (in the examples given anyway).
So bottom line is I think the TOS are there for the right reasons (and no doubt have to keep the payment provider happy in any case) even if it unfortunately rules out some mainstream content which if this site existed in complete isolation would be ripe for discussion.
Separate topic unrelated to the previous replies. (The previous two replies were good ones btw)
Maybe this forum does suck hehe. I have been trying to contribute. All it takes is one bad interaction, and now I don't want to contribute. It makes me feel like I've wasted my time writing a pointless reply.
Here are some reasons why I think people may feel disappointed in this forum or unwilling to contribute:
* Deleted posts because of rules and disagreement with rules * Disapproved images or personal issues with verification * Bad reply interactions that are negative or derogatory * Feeling like your reply is ignored * Getting no responses in your post * Feeling overwhelmed by all of the producers content * Lack of new contributions from other users
This is the nature of the forum I guess. There is not much that can be done other than change our expectations. For example, don't expect your post to get replies and you will no be disappointed if it doesn't.
It requires motivation and time to contribute. The only motion for me was the small social interaction I get from my contributions. I'm kind of losing it though.
Also I could list the counter argument for why this forum is amazing. There are wonderful people. Interactions are fun. The forum rules are good. It is well moderated. I see new posts from new users. The love and comment system is amazing and very fun to use. People use it to find sources, get recommendations, or share personal photos. People use it to play wam games, post personals, and discuss non-wam stuff. There are a lot of reasons to be happy with this forum.
WildThang said: This is a good discussion and I thonk everybody agrees the absolute exclusion of kids in any posts is the most responsible thing to do.
The discussion appears (to me) to also seek guidance on why some general kid situations arent also banned from producers even though the models and production staff are all of legal age. Prom is usually involving kids, right? I know i am opening a can of worms because I also love the messy prom dress scenes and am guilty of making them but i dont want to continue if they are also no longer acceptable media for this community.
Over here, the thing "prom" brings first to mind is "The Proms", a series of classical music concerts at the Royal Albert Hall each year which culminate in the world-famous "Last Night Of The Proms" which always features "Rule Britania", "Land Of Hope and Glory", and "Jerusalem", culimnating in the national anthem. "Prom" in this case being short for "Promenade Concert", with the original idea being the audience could walk about while listening to the music, though that ceased to be part of it many decades and a previous venue ago. As with most classical events, people tend to dress to the formal nines for it, especially as they're going to be on TV.
I know prom has also come to mean a formal music/dance event in general, hence "prom gown", but is it exclusively a kids thing, or is it just that lots of schools do them, but in fact any organisation can - isn't the Met Gala a form of prom? I'd imagine as long as you don't insinuate that the people in the scene are kids, and avoid terms like "High School Prom", it'd probably be OK?
WildThang said: Or the re-enactment of scenes which (in their original distribution) were targeting children like YCDTOTV (which I have also produced and enjoyed others producing).
As I understand the rules, re-enacting the general scenes is OK, as long as actual titles and graphics aren't used - so no having contestants in t-shirts with an actual show logo on, but just having similar colours is probably OK. Just having gunge delivered in a similar way is unlikely to be an issue, as long as the set isn't delibaretely made to look like a copy of a kids show one.
Justine said: I think the biggest change is the required user ID to post any suggestive photos, more than anything else. It really creates a bind for the average user: you could keep your anonymity by not posting your face in the past but now, you can't do that because you can't verify ages if you don't have a face. So that means you need to post your face marking you obviously of age or submit ID (and I think the rule is "submit" anyway just so all are safe) and that's a problem for those with professional and/or family reasons for needing to hide. I, for one, can't take the risk of my ID being leaked or hacked or anything and I know I'm not alone.
The general hassle of submitting an ID makes casual "I'll just post this on a whim" no longer a thing and the ID rules have pretty much eliminated all user/amateur content. It's made the site largely about paid content and sales than it ever used to be. I'm glad that content is being produced, but we're pretty much here to consume that rather than discuss and exchange fetish fun of our own.
This has also had an affect on the number of people choosing to create alter egos on the forum and whether people liked or disliked this they were always and those that remain still are (outside of producers) amongst the most regular posters. Living out their fantasies and helping others do the same.
I will also say having been here since near enough the start and recently become less of a 'lurker' these people now seem to operate mainly via PM
Platypus539 said: At the same time, the number of people producing content has probably increased, because the barrier to entry is so much lower now from a technology perspective, as most of us will have a video camera (sort of) in our pocket now and some of the stigma around producing adult content is lifting. There is a limitation that each scene may only be promoted once, but if there are more scenes, that's going to take up more of the forum.
This is very true plus a few producers fly as close to the wire as possible when promoting a scene. A tease post, a scene post, a wash off post, a video of scene and wash off, maybe then a sale on a scene.
Also compared to the beginning the forum has a lot more sub forums so the posts that used to.break up the producers posts are now split up.I'm various sub forums.
I will also say sometimes things in the forum seem to be more disturbing than I remember seeing before. Recent examples a post asking about potentially shooting with their daughter and members with thousands of comments on photos in under 10 months commenting on a post then every picture... To me that's a bit OTT. Also The number of female users that join and leave so quickly.
The children issue has to be the way it is because of the very small minority, like the member who was getting young girls on Tic Tok to pie them selves and asked the forum to help get some to 10000 followers etc. Recent allow this fetish world to cross into any of the children's places. I remember reading in the Metro about people mass voting on children's shows for who was going to get gunged. Only the Metro but it made the news, stories like that make it harder for people to be open about their fetish.
DungeonMasterOne said: I know prom has also come to mean a formal music/dance event in general, hence "prom gown", but is it exclusively a kids thing, or is it just that lots of schools do them, but in fact any organisation can - isn't the Met Gala a form of prom? I'd imagine as long as you don't insinuate that the people in the scene are kids, and avoid terms like "High School Prom", it'd probably be OK?
Prom gown or prom dress in the US is used to refer to a formal gown that a high school age student would buy for a dance. The met gala is where they would use the term formal gown. Almost all high schools in the US have proms, that is the big night they party, rent limos etc. I know that the importance of prom is purely social. I have not heard of colleges having a prom. However, I have also heard high school dances referred to as a spring formal. But I have never heard the term prom used outside of a high school situation.
I am not sure if the term has a different meaning in other countries.
There are a lot of different factors that, in the opinion of just one guy who's been around for almost 20 years, have turned this forum into...not great. I don't think it sucks, but it's...not great.
The fact that mainstream content, the source of most WAMmers' original love of WAM, is being legislated out doesn't help. The dubious reasoning for it makes matters worse. The avoidance of kids was acceptable when it was an actual problem. But now that we've done a good job policing content where kids appear, we're still using them as an excuse to rule out more mainstream content when kids don't even appear in the frame. Any reasonable person would draw the conclusion that there's a systemic push toward producer content that actually makes the forum money at the expense of mainstream content. So about that...
The producer content is very not great these days. The low barrier of entry afforded by cell phones and cheap craigslist models hasn't made produced WAM better, it's just exploded the volume of garbage available. Turns out a cheap phone camera doesn't magically make footage color balanced, framing coherent, concepts logical, or subjects flattering. Of course, even if a video is worth 50 cents, it's still 50 cents more than a mainstream clip can generate, so let's flood the main boards with low-effort junk! God help us when AI photography becomes more user friendly.
By the way, the balls it takes for someone--a moderator at that--to advocate for producer content over mainstream content knowing the state of producer content these days. I'd pay 10x more for an average EEG clip with an endless credit scroll taking up half the screen than most of the stuff currently taking up our store.
So yeah, when you have a perfect storm of good mainstream WAM being phased out, good produced WAM slowing down and being priced out of the market, and not enough good young producers to drown out the trash sucking up all the space, it's going to add up to a not very good forum. And I wouldn't even be offended by that if I didn't think we're going to start seeing people, either through ignorance of anything else or sycophantic marketing for revenue generation, start to position the UMD as the end-all-be-all of the WAM community. So I just want to emphasize for those who may be led to believe otherwise: THIS SITE DOES NOT REPRESENT THE WAM COMMUNITY! It doesn't define WAM nor does it contain all that our delightful little fetish has to offer. There is WAM outside of the UMD. Better WAM, more thoughtful WAM, WAM that endeavors to do more than drive people to an eCommerce platform. How do I know? Because I've loved WAM longer than I can remember. And if this forum were the entirety of the WAM experience, I'd walk into the ocean.
I feel the messy/wetlook forums are very much a lot of advertising but still when users post I feel their posts get a lot of attention. Non-wam is actually my favorite forum here because of how it's almost all user based interactions rather than producer started advertising threads. I can't speak to how umd used to be since I joined in early 2019, but I feel it's remained somewhat consistent.
If I had to make recommendations for changes maybe a separate channel for advertising, not sure if that would work. Could be called "new content" then let the messy/wetlook forums become dedicated to user interactions. Sometimes I just don't like to view those forums because of all the ads, it's overwhelming and I feel if I made a post it's just be buried.
Of course it's my two cents and not a call to action. TL;DR I think the forums are pretty much as I remember the past four years, but the abundance of advertising on the forums makes posting intimidating.
TheSpecialist said: The producer content is very not great these days.
This comment makes me not want to produce new content now. Have you made any content? Worthy of your own criticisms?
TheSpecialist said: This Site Does Not Represent The Wam Community! It doesn't define WAM nor does it contain all that our delightful little fetish has to offer. There is WAM outside of the UMD. Better WAM, more thoughtful WAM, WAM that endeavors to do more than drive people to an eCommerce platform. How do I know? Because I've loved WAM longer than I can remember.
Where is this located? I am curious? Your account shows you have been a member here for 2 years.
This comment makes me not want to produce new content now. Have you made any content? Worthy of your own criticisms?
I actually think you're one of the great new-ish producers keeping this place up. If I haven't bought any of your stuff under this name I know I did under an old name before I decided to reboot my presence here.
Seriously, you should know that your stuff stands heads and shoulders above most. And if people aren't telling you that, they should. The effort you put into your videos is great!
TheSpecialist said: This Site Does Not Represent The Wam Community! It doesn't define WAM nor does it contain all that our delightful little fetish has to offer. There is WAM outside of the UMD. Better WAM, more thoughtful WAM, WAM that endeavors to do more than drive people to an eCommerce platform. How do I know? Because I've loved WAM longer than I can remember. Where is this located? I am curious? Your account shows you have been a member here for 2 years.
Reddit, Discord, Patreon, Instagram, producers' non-UMD sites. Clips4Sale, OnlyFans, the list goes on and on. There is still a lot of good WAM that, when unburdened by heavy-handed regulations, suppression of non-revenue-generating content, and the race to the bottom of cheap low-effort fodder, are still having fun and being creative with the kink just like "the old days."
TheSpecialist said: Reddit, Discord, Patreon, Instagram, producers' non-UMD sites. Clips4Sale, OnlyFans, the list goes on and on.
Could you be more vague?
I can't do everyone's homework. But yes, there's an r/wetandmessy. There's a WAM Discord server I was on for a hot second. There are a number of WAM Patreons including UMD producers who have more content on Patreon (Slimed Models comes to mind). Have a favorite OF model? She'll probably get messy for you for the right price.
See, this is what I was worried about. For all its faults, the UMD has become so successful in making itself the Single Source of Truth that its users aren't even using google anymore.
And many of those platforms have 0 moderation and promote the piracy of content from "real" producers. No thanks - those are not legitimate sources of WAM material unless you are looking to steal.
This comment makes me not want to produce new content now. Have you made any content? Worthy of your own criticisms?
I actually think you're one of the great new-ish producers keeping this place up. If I haven't bought any of your stuff under this name I know I did under an old name before I decided to reboot my presence here.
Seriously, you should know that your stuff stands heads and shoulders above most. And if people aren't telling you that, they should. The effort you put into your videos is great!
I mean, he ain't wrong. I glanced over your store and you got a nice clean look to your shoots. Nice exposures, great hues, even depth of field is clean looking and offers a nice pleasant bokeh! The over all feel is polished compared to some of your contemporaries/counterparts. I don't typically buy content since I started producing but your stuff looks great!
To play devils advocate, he did say "those who don't put any effort in" which I would say your work hardly qualifies.
TheSpecialist said: Reddit, Discord, Patreon, Instagram, producers' non-UMD sites. Clips4Sale, OnlyFans, the list goes on and on.
Could you be more vague?
I gotta admit, I'm not a fan of Reddit or Discord simply because they are largely unmoderated and piracy is rampant on both.
IG (and Meta overall) are worst than fascist Italy. I lost count on how many appeals I have had to do on there that it takes any enjoyment of sharing on there.
Clips4Sale actively tracks piracy as does Onlyfans (with exceptions).
To be honest, I don't put all my eggs in the UMD basket. I also don't really upload much onto the UMD store because honestly the traffic I get on my other clip stores is vastly better. It's nothing personal. Just those platforms meet my needs more than here.
I also always just saw this place as a forum where we can discuss and share vs sell content so there is that.
TheSpecialist said: I can't do everyone's homework.
You were asked about other places and then rattled off a bunch of generic social media sites with no information otherwise, like you were pulling it out of your ass.
Reddit is loosely moderated and any topics are allowed for the most part, but it is also Google searchable.
Discord, if used properly can be ok. The problem with discord is that your server can exist for years and then suddenly Thanosed without any warning. The people who run Discord can out of the blue decide to delete your server. No getting it back, no appeals process etc. There is no equal enforcement of the rules. So you have to be careful with what your server is. You also have to be careful with who you let in. I was in a few modding servers that got deleted because Discord felt it was violating some rules. Other than that, I think Discord is a great alternative it is getting the invite that can be the only stumbling block.
TheSpecialist said: There are a lot of different factors that, in the opinion of just one guy who's been around for almost 20 years, have turned this forum into...not great. I don't think it sucks, but it's...not great....
I agree with almost this entire post. I also have been here a long time-- over 20 years. I still come here just about every day that I have internet access and will likely continue to do so. However, where as I used to stick around and read posts, etc., now I spend probably less than a minute on the forum most days. It is mostly producers hawking their wares and, I agree with the Specialist, much of that is unappealing to me these days. I have no problem with producers selling their vids. They have to, but the actual interactive content it produces is minimal. Even for the decreasing number of producers whose work I really like, when they post something, I look, decide if I will buy, read a couple of messages saying how great the vid is and that is that. In other words, no real discussion.
Like it or not, mainstream wam produces more discussion. I have never gone into a producer thread and critiqued their work (e.g., this sucks!) because it is not polite. No such compunction with mainstream wam, which people can discuss freely without fear of anyone taking offense.
A forum is supposed to be a place of discussion and, increasingly, this ain't a forum. You should also know that the results of the poll in the OP are probably skewed by the fact that a lot of people concerned about the direction of the forum have already left here, sadly. Here is a thread I posted a while back that garnered a lot of discussion and probably led to video sales. https://umd.net/forums/post-a-pic-that-you-love-but-have-no-ide We occasionally still see multi-page threads like that but they are becoming more rare.
Chalk this post up to "old man yelling at cloud" but the UMD isn't what it used to be and that, to me, is kinda sad.
Finally, I disagree with TheSpecialist re other places to find WAM-- sadly, those other places are not forums and don't really make up a community. And Reddit-- I find that subreddit Godawful. So disappointing.
Finally, I disagree with TheSpecialist re other places to find WAM-- sadly, those other places are not forums and don't really make up a community. And Reddit-- I find that subreddit Godawful. So disappointing.
Just want to clarify that I wasn't trying to pitch alternate communities to the UMD. For better or worse, the UMD is still the largest community in terms of people interested in discussing WAM. Though my experience is almost exactly like yours, CKCP. I come here as a matter of routine, see no new discussions that interest me, and bail after a couple of minutes to continue the rest of my day.
What I was suggesting, however, were places to find WAM that isn't posted here. Some are valid, some suck worse than UMD, but it's important to remember that not everyone who makes WAM posts it here (even if certain mods pearl-clutch whenever someone asks about alternate sources to UMD). Also I forgot to shout out the Youtube curators who don't pirate producer content but collect the mainstream clips that would've been perfectly acceptable here a couple of years ago but aren't anymore for..."reasons." I think it's worth it to be creative and use the google machines to find the WAM you want. The search can get frustrating and you'll wind up with more bookmarks than you'd like, but your experience will be richer for it.
SloppyT said: Seems like the only acceptable discussions are XXX WAM or custom producer stuff. Mainstream WAM is hardly allowed. I understand content with underage people around but so often very loose reasons are given to remove any content.
Mainstream content is perfectly acceptable as long as it's not kiddie content or kid's shows. We do not provide loose reasons for anything, and I will gladly do a public deep dive into anything you don't understand. Just ask me
Justine said: I think the biggest change is the required user ID to post any suggestive photos, more than anything else. It really creates a bind for the average user: you could keep your anonymity by not posting your face in the past but now, you can't do that because you can't verify ages if you don't have a face. So that means you need to post your face marking you obviously of age or submit ID (and I think the rule is "submit" anyway just so all are safe) and that's a problem for those with professional and/or family reasons for needing to hide. I, for one, can't take the risk of my ID being leaked or hacked or anything and I know I'm not alone.
Since I'm being forced to collect government ID's from anybody posting suggestive content, I've taken the most extreme step for privacy that a web site can take, and that is to simply not permanently store your ID online anywhere. It never gets transmitted to another server or cloud service, and it never gets backed up. It's wiped from UMD as soon as I see it. If the UMD was to ever get hacked, they wouldn't get that information, nor your 2257 Custodian of Records, nor your wire or checking account info. I just don't know what else I could do to remain in compliance with all the billers yet still gain your trust.
On top of that, I personally own this site and from the most technical / legal standpoint, *I* am the one actually selling and hosting your content, not you. I'm the one who faces legal exposure regarding hundreds of thousands of pieces of content uploaded here. I ask that everybody help me a little bit with this ID thing. I have NO interest in collecting ID's, much less the overhead of storing them securely offline, etc, but it's what I have to do. And if it reduces the amount of amateur content, I'm sorry but if anybody has input on how to change that, I'm listening.
Man, this thread blew up. I'll respond again a little bit later.
I actually wish I liked less of the commercial content here. A lot of it (including some of the infamous "cell phone" vids) ticks my boxes enough to the point where I have difficulty narrowing it down to just a few producers. Granted, I'm relatively new to UMD still compared to many, but that's just how I feel. As far as the forum, there are definitely hiccups here and there, but I'm OK with it for the most part, I guess? But again, take what I say with a grain of salt because I don't really know what to compare it to. I've only really been active here since 2022 despite having an account back in 2020.
DungeonMasterOne said: TBH i think we have more enthusiastic amateurs now than we have for a while, which is good to see.
This is absolutely true. The volume of new producers signing up and posting stuff is greater than ever... and it's great stuff. I really think the whole argument of pro vs amateur had been dead for some time. It doesn't make much sense anymore.
DungeonMasterOne said: One good side-effect of the new rules applying to tube sites, they've largely eradicated the casual piracy that used to plague things, both for amateurs and pro producers. I know piracy still happens in closed groups, but it's a lot less prevalent than it used to be when people
There is still a big (and growing) current of fans here who use UMD's Piracy Tips system to submit tips to producers and site owners, and UMD auto-generates takedown emails that actually work. Thanks to everybody who takes part in this, as it does put power in our hands to take stuff down.
Stealthman said: The reason is that I feel like this forum has become more of just an advertising venue for WAM producers to advertise new videos in the past year or so. Obviously, that's not a problem in & of itself. Producers have always been highlighting their content on this forum since it started. But I remember back in 2019-2020 when I first started posting here, it felt like there were more forum posts and threads just about WAM in general, and discussing favorite WAM movies, mainstream content, etc. in between all the producers selling their videos.
I don't want anybody to forget that basically every advertisement and plug here is chock full of free pictures, and they're always on-topic for our beloved little niche. It's not just blind text links and banner ads for random junk. You actually get to click and enjoy a lot of stuff and not pay for it (I pay for the bandwidth). I also try to clearly label what forum posts are an internal ad for a UMD store item, and you can filter them out if you're VIP.
So yes, the forums are a hybrid advertising platform. But it's like that so that I don't have to force pop-up ads on you. I don't have to sell your information or use tracking cookies or spyware. Instead, you have the choice of whether or not to even look at an ad, and things stay pure. This is the specific reason why we allow plugs in the forum. It's the business model we've settled into that keeps us from annoying the hell out of you with pop-ups.
In addition to that, you have several options to filter and constrain content to what you want. We're not quite AI yet, but most of the UMD is highly customizable to what you want to see.
SloppyT said: So, arbitrarily, content with exclusively adults is removed.
Not arbitrary. If it's a kid, or from a kid's show, it can't be here. Other mainstream stuff is fine. It really is as simple as that.
SloppyT said: With mainstream WAM, that accounts for most of it entirely
No. It does not. And pushing that narrative is actually dangerous and puts us on the wrong path.
SloppyT said: , especially with the loose interpretation of this, as the "Esto Es Guerra" style south American shows are for some reason not fine. Never mind those same "kids shows", speaking of Guerreros Puerto Rico or EEG, they have gorgeous scantily clad women twerking and acting seductive -- but NO, because this show which is 100% adults and is almost entirely these adults running around on obstacle courses, but because someone thought it might appeal somehow in some way to a child -- REMOVED/DELETED/DO-NOT-DISCUSS.
I'm always open to discussion about what shows should be considered kid's shows or not. A lot of these shows I've never even heard of, and act on the advice of the community. Please hit me personally, or even start a thread, if you think a show is incorrectly barred, and we'll have a talk
SloppyT said: I don't know the real reason for this, because at face value it's ridiculous to remove content with adults because someone suggests the show is not exclusively made for adults, but that limitation is pretty awful. I wonder if it was done to drive people towards producer content, because more and more it's obvious what this forum is about in 2023.
The "real reason" has been hashed out publicly for years in this forum, and crystalized into our Terms of Service. I'd hoped that by now there is no ambiguity as to the intent of the rules. If I wanted to drive people to producer content I'd not let any outside content get posted and make this whole site a store only. Also, content does not have to be exclusively for adults. It just can't be a show aimed at a market of kids.
SloppyT said: Does someone think if they starve out this forum of the majority of the dwindling mainstream content it will drive people to producers?... the mainstream stuff is what creates this community
Conflating "mainstream" with "kiddie content" was a reason for huge arguments over this. Let's not do that again. Mainstream is okay, but that's not the same thing as kiddie content.
SloppyT said Anyone here interested in EEG in only interested for the beautiful 20-40 year old South American women (or men) getting messy. Not some brief glimpse into the audience where there might be someone underaged, give me a break.... All this nonsense about wiki page definitions, what time it airs or who might be watching it is idiotic... if it's all adults, it should be fine. It not, then No - but none of this subjective interpretations that just so happen to ensure whatever rare mainstream WAM is out there that about 90% of it is now off limits.
We have to gauge the intent of the show somehow, and if there is a debate about where we should draw the line on calling it a kid's show then let's have it. For our purposes, if it's a show produced for children, it has no place on an adult forum because it prompts visitors to view more of that show. Other sites see UMD as the referrer in the browser metadata and that's not good. Plus, having UMD host this discussion places us in search results linked to that show. There are actually a lot of reasons for these rules, all of which have been hashed out publicly.
Also, 90% of mainstream wam does not involve kids.
DungeonMasterOne said: As to time slots, wikipedia, etc - as mods we have to try an apply MM's rules in a fair and even-handed way. Looking up what info there is on a show, and seeing when it was broadcast - 8am-noon on Saturdays and 4pm-6pm weekdays are, in most countries, "kids TV time" - are reasonable ways to work out, if we're not familiar with a given show, whether it was made for kids, or made for a general audience.
Props where due. Yall do really look up the shows and take a lot of time to make an informed decision as to whether they're meant for kids or not, looking up the ages of the actors and actresses at the time of filming. There is SO much thought that goes into every mod decision, and the thinking behind everything is documented on UMD's backend. If I didn't have you, I'd be forced to just delete anything remotely questionable as a matter of time.
SloppyT said:
DungeonMasterOne said: No kids, period. Not in the foreground, not in the background, not in the studio audience, and not if the intended TV audience is kids either.
Nobody. NONE. Not a single person in this thread is suggesting any video with any under 18 in any capacity be allowed. NOBODY.
None in the foreground or background or studio audience. I said as much already.
The crux of this issue is: When there are NO under-18s, NONE AT ALL, in the video in any capacity... buuuut the show or youtube clip is somehow determined to be geared at younger audiences -- why are those videos removed and deleted?
We get that you are not looking for kids, but everybody is not you. When you post something about a kiddie show (even if the clip or the mention is only about the adult), you're still posting about a kiddie show, and that's just not a good look on an adult forum.
SloppyT said: Meanwhile, producers are freely able to promote "SEXY PROM QUEEN TAKES DILDO" or videos with adults dressed as school girls. Why? Why is that allowed but mainstream videos are savagely curtailed?
Because they are not children, the content isn't geared toward children, and it's not a clip from a known kiddie show that will associate us publicly with that show. The portrayal of school girls cannot be of children either, but "school" can mean 18+ in high school or college.
dalamar666 said: That is the thing. The stance on the forums is that the sites that are being linked have the responsibility to police their content. There is no rule breaking going on. The piracy aspect as it relates to non-WAM produced content is not an issue here. Now, content that is piracy of WAM producers is only allowed in the context of letting a producer know that their work is on those sites so that they can file a copyright claim.
Piracy is never a non-issue whether it's from a known wam producer or not. It's just that it's not feasible for me or a mod to reverse search every single image that's uploaded here, or to do research on every link posted. But if we happen to see something that we KNOW was ripped off, we'll take it down. It just happens that most of what we most know, is stuff from wam producers!
Nostalgic Erotica Prod said: Clips4Sale, you are required to create a model profile along with uploading all signed release paperwork, Valid ID and be verified yourself to open up shop. In every clip, you need to attach the model profile for each one that appears in the clip. Caught the leg of the other camera operator in the frame of your shot? Guess what you are doing: Creating a model profile for them as well or you are scrapping that bit of footage, and yes, clips have been rejected because of this. In fact, just a day ago, my clip was rejected because our video bumper features brief shots of all the women we have worked with to date and they demand now we attach the appropriate model profile for every model who appears in our intro. AN INTRO! Don't get me started on the precarious balance you need to have when writing your descriptions.
Trust me when I say that it can get a whole lot worse than what we have here.
I didn't know that, and that's awful that you have to upload your model information. The arrangement between producer and model are usually confidential, and content has already been shot with the model never expecting their real information to go anywhere past the producer shooting the material. To force this content to be uploaded would be to force a lot of producers to either breach the agreement with their models, or to scrap the content altogether. That said, who knows that the law will make us do next year or next decade. Cringe cringe cringe
mFeelzGood said: * Deleted posts because of rules and disagreement with rules
I think you hit the nail on the head right there.
We don't delete posts that state a disagreement with rules. (Look at this post.) We delete posts that are against the rules. Just making sure that's clear!
messyrob1980 said: I will also say sometimes things in the forum seem to be more disturbing than I remember seeing before. Recent examples a post asking about potentially shooting with their daughter and members with thousands of comments on photos in under 10 months commenting on a post then every picture... To me that's a bit OTT. Also The number of female users that join and leave so quickly.
Please flag anything like that you see. In fact, I'm inboxing you right now to get more information. The implication that we'd deliberately leave anything like that on this forum is completely wrong. About once every 6 months somebody is flagged who is doing that groomer-like activity and I have to track / remove them, but there is no way I'd leave them on here knowing that.
Also the implication that we are "scaring off the females" has no basis. We've had a consistent spread of male / female visitors for over a decade according to our stats. If you know some sort of metrics about UMD that I'm aware of, please share it with me!
TheSpecialist said: The fact that mainstream content, the source of most WAMmers' original love of WAM, is being legislated out doesn't help.
Mainstream content has been an integral part of UMD since the very first day. It's always welcome. Please don't conflate mainstream with kiddie. We allow mainstream content, not kiddie content. I really don't understand why this is such a hard point to get across to everybody Mainstream OK. Kiddie not OK.
TheSpecialist said: ]The dubious reasoning for it makes matters worse. The avoidance of kids was acceptable when it was an actual problem. But now that we've done a good job policing content where kids appear, we're still using them as an excuse to rule out more mainstream content
The job was not just to police content where kids appear. It's to prevent the UMD from being a hotbed of grown adults who salivate over content literally made for children. If that doesn't make you cringe then certainly you can understand how that will make others cringe, or worse make me come under fire somehow and have to deal with that.
Look, I'm lenient about a lot of things and I spend my days programming more functionality into this site so you can do what you want, and even removing rules that are outdated. Restrictions are not really my thing. But I need to protect the future of this site from many things, only one of which is actual kids appearing in the content. Everything is interconnected now and we do not exist in isolation, so other sites (and other entities) know where the traffic comes from. And there are actual pedos out there that we don't want to attract. There are actually new biller rules that explicitly state that we cannot appear to be attracting anyone looking for kiddie content. So no kiddie content can be allowed, even if there are no kids in it. Just not a good look from any angle, and definitely not a hill that anyone should be dieing on.
TheSpecialist said: Any reasonable person would draw the conclusion that there's a systemic push toward producer content that actually makes the forum money at the expense of mainstream content. So about that...
If I wanted to keep traffic in-house, I would not beat around the bush. There would be an announcement that no links out would be allowed any longer. I don't have time to wage a war of attrition, and if I did, I wouldn't do it by playing games with my TOS or by confusing the community. I've been extremely clear about the exact reasons for every rule I have.
TheSpecialist said: The producer content is very not great these days. The low barrier of entry afforded by cell phones and cheap craigslist models hasn't made produced WAM better, it's just exploded the volume of garbage available. Turns out a cheap phone camera doesn't magically make footage color balanced, framing coherent, concepts logical, or subjects flattering. Of course, even if a video is worth 50 cents, it's still 50 cents more than a mainstream clip can generate, so let's flood the main boards with low-effort junk! God help us when AI photography becomes more user friendly.
Equipment has been commoditized to the point that people are empowered to share the stuff they shot on their phone, and that's beautiful to me. Why would I restrict that? It doesn't pre-empt the pro material because that's here too. And you can even upload the stuff here and I'll host it for free if you don't want to sell it. Again, mainstream stuff is always welcome to be linked out to, but not if it's from a kid's show. It's not some convoluted conspiracy to sell more shit
TheSpecialist said: So I just want to emphasize for those who may be led to believe otherwise: THIS SITE DOES NOT REPRESENT THE WAM COMMUNITY! It doesn't define WAM nor does it contain all that our delightful little fetish has to offer.
The UMD is but one site in the wam community. Since we have adult content on this particular site, that does mean we can't host kiddie content. If you feel that there is some content that we are restricting that should not be, then start up a discussion about it. Just saying we're against "mainstream" is obvious and disingenuous, and above all it's misleading and dangerous for our community because it confuses people for a long time to come.
Stay messy, my friends
10/18/23, 10:26am: This post won't bump the thread to the top.
Filthy Girl said: If I had to make recommendations for changes maybe a separate channel for advertising, not sure if that would work.
It wouldn't work. Download store plugs in our forums is our business model, and most people love it because every plug has free content that you don't even have to click on. Threads with plugs in them are clearly labeled if you want to avoid them, and you can even filter out all the producers you don't want to see. Be reminded that UMD does not hit you with pop-ups and all the other BS other other sites do. This is how we do "ads." I mean, you're not seeing ads for like Viagra. It's all wam!
Would anybody actually like an option to endure pop-ups and questional privacy practices, instead of seeing free samples from legit wam producers that they don't even have to click on?
TheSpecialist said: For all its faults, the UMD has become so successful in making itself the Single Source of Truth that its users aren't even using google anymore.
It was never my intention to entrap audiences and keep them here. The "D" in UMD means directory, and the first link on our nav has always been "Sites." The goal has always been to be a useful resource to find new wam. Now, all of this is enabled by our store system and the unobtrusive advertising system that goes along with it, and people seem really comfortable with that. I'd ask you to not put down our users as if they can't use Google anymore, of as if they are UMD sycophants.
CKCP said A forum is supposed to be a place of discussion and, increasingly, this ain't a forum.... Chalk this post up to "old man yelling at cloud" but the UMD isn't what it used to be and that, to me, is kinda sad.
I think it's wrong to look at the ratio of posts and judge the entire forum on that. If the number of actual "discussions" stays the same, or even increases... but the number of plugs increases faster that the discussions, would you think that this "ain't a forum?" Because the discussions are still here, right? There are all kinds of filters so you don't have to see anybody's posts that you don't like. I recommend you use them because the alternative is artificially stopping people from posting stuff that *other* people do like. I can't make a single UMD that makes everybody happy, but those filters do go a long way without affecting what others like to see.
TheSpecialist said: Just want to clarify that I wasn't trying to pitch alternate communities to the UMD.
Well I am! We can't host everything, and our definition of wam doesn't even fit everyone else's definition. I encourage and support anyone endeavoring to run another community.
TheSpecialist said: not everyone who makes WAM posts it here (even if certain mods pearl-clutch whenever someone asks about alternate sources to UMD).
I'm interested in why you said that, because alternate sources of wam to UMD are encouraged to be posted. Tube sites are banned, as well as kiddie sites, etc, but it wasn't that, what was it?
TheSpecialist said: Also I forgot to shout out the Youtube curators who don't pirate producer content but collect the mainstream clips that would've been perfectly acceptable here a couple of years ago but aren't anymore for..."reasons."
We do allow mainstream clips, just not kiddie show clips. That's the "reason."
Stay messy, my friends
10/18/23, 10:26am: This post won't bump the thread to the top.
Messmaster said: On top of that, I personally own this site and from the most technical / legal standpoint, *I* am the one actually selling and hosting your content, not you. I'm the one who faces legal exposure regarding hundreds of thousands of pieces of content uploaded here. I ask that everybody help me a little bit with this ID thing. I have NO interest in collecting ID's, much less the overhead of storing them securely offline, etc, but it's what I have to do. And if it reduces the amount of amateur content, I'm sorry but if anybody has input on how to change that, I'm listening.
Man, this thread blew up. I'll respond again a little bit later.
I want to clarify that I don't fault you for the ID collection rule. Or envy you. It's plainly obvious it makes your life a lot more miserable and more work and that sucks. I'm just pointing out that it takes the process of posting here from an anonymous escape from reality, something entirely detached from the remainder of life to one step closer to reality, if you will. There's no way around that that becomes an issue for people.
I also want to add that the times we've interacted, you've always been incredibly gracious, understanding, and conscientious. There's been a few things I think weren't perfect but I can speak for many that I'd rather have you in charge of things than someone else.