A Higher Administrative Court in Germany has upheld a network ban against Pornhub and YouPorn, ruling that the websites’ parent company, Aylo (formerly MindGeek), failed to implement legally required age verification protocols under German youth protection law.

The ruling, issued Thursday, confirms that the Rhineland-Palatinate Media Authority’s blocking order is immediately enforceable, effectively maintaining the blackout of Aylo’s sites across Germany.

At the core of the dispute is Germany’s Interstate Treaty on the Protection of Minors in the Media, which requires that pornographic content must not be accessible without robust age-assurance mechanisms. The court found that Aylo had persistently failed to comply, despite multiple legal warnings and the imposition of coercive fines.

The enforcement action stems from a 2020 order issued by the North Rhine-Westphalia Media Authority, which demanded that Aylo either remove pornographic content from its sites or implement a “closed user group”—a gated access system ensuring only verified adults can view the material.

After Aylo failed to comply, coordinated enforcement efforts were launched in 2024 by various state-level media regulators, including the Media Authority of Rhineland-Palatinate, which issued a blocking order to local network providers. This action mandated the technical blocking of Aylo’s telemedia services, including Pornhub and YouPorn, from German users.

Key Points:

• Pornhub and YouPorn remain blocked in Germany following Aylo’s refusal to implement age checks.
• Court: No legal interest in appeal due to Aylo’s declared non-compliance.
• Regulators signal that enforcement will continue unless companies fully comply.
• Appeal to Germany’s Federal Administrative Court expected.

Aylo, headquartered in Cyprus, challenged the order in court but was unsuccessful. The Neustadt an der Weinstraße Administrative Court rejected Aylo’s initial request to halt the blocking. On appeal, the Higher Administrative Court of Rhineland-Palatinate affirmed the decision.

The court found that Aylo had “no legally protected interest” in pursuing the appeal because the company had made clear it had no intention of complying with the 2020 order.

According to the judgment, the company openly refused to establish proper age-verification mechanisms or to remove pornographic content, making any legal relief effectively moot.

The court further dismissed Aylo’s argument that it sought to pursue “substantive justice” over adherence to legal formalities, calling it a “questionable understanding of the binding effect of court decisions.”

Crucially, the court noted that the blocking order would be lifted immediately if Aylo complied with the original basic order by implementing adequate age controls or modifying its content offerings.

This latest ruling strengthens the hand of German state-level regulators, particularly Dr. Tobias Schmid, Director of the North Rhine-Westphalia Media Authority, who has long championed stricter enforcement of online age-verification rules.

The judgment aligns with a May 2025 decision by the Berlin Administrative Court, which affirmed that state regulators can enforce national content laws across Germany, even if enforcement originates from a single state authority.

Aylo is expected to appeal to the Federal Administrative Court, Germany’s highest body for administrative matters. Until then, the block remains in place.

The German case unfolds amid a broader European shift toward mandatory age assurance on adult content sites. Countries such as France and Ireland have already introduced similar measures, while the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA) is being enforced against adult platforms accused of insufficient child protection standards.

With increasing pressure from both national and EU-level regulators, compliance with age-verification laws is no longer optional for adult content platforms operating in Europe.