Pornhub has been forced to remove a giant billboard it had erected in New York’s Times Square, with it mysteriously disappearing from the area just hours after it was put up.
In May, Pornhub launched a headline-grabbing design competition,
with entrants submitting a variety of images and slogans for
their forthcoming adverts, including one depicting a woman
questioning a man: “What are you watching?” with the
response “Nothing,” prompting the tagline: “The
world’s biggest archive of nothing.”
In total, more than 3,000 submissions were offered up by willing
entrants.
The sign reading, “All you need is hand” with a picture
of a person’s pair of hands coming together to form a heart
shape, was designed by Nuri Galver, an Istanbul-based copywriter.
The 54 feet of safe-for-work advertising was put up on Wednesday.
To celebrate the occasion, Gotham Rock Choir performed an
acapella Pornhub-related adaptation of the Beatles’ hit “All
You Need is Love.”
Later in the day, Pornhub Katie tweeted:
No more Pornhub Billboard in Times Square :( pic.twitter.com/hBH3fZvkz5
— Pornhub Katie (@Pornhub) October 8, 2014
It later emerged that the sign was removed because of complaints
from the Hilton DoubleTree hotel, upon which the advert was
mounted.
“Our initial agreement with City Outdoor, the company that
owns the billboard space, was that we had full approval for the
ad to be placed in the initial location,” a spokesman told
Buzzfeed.
“We are now currently in the process of evaluating various
high traffic alternative locations in New York City and in other
major metropolitan areas.”
A PR representative for Pornhub, Mike Williams, expressed some
surprise to the Daily Dot about the removal.
“It's unclear as to why the GM decided to voice her opinion
that late in the game, so to speak – might have been the media
attention, or she just had her own opinion of adult entertainment
advertising that didn’t sit well,” Williams said.