Backpage Introduce

Backpage.com was a classified ad website founded in 2004 by alternative newspaper chain New Times Media/New Times Media (later known as Village Voice Media or VVM) as a competitor to Craigslist.

Like Craigslist, Backpage allows users to post ads in categories such as automotive, personal, jobs, rentals, and adult services. It soon became the second largest online classifieds site in the United States.

Craigslist was forced to close its "adult services" section in 2010 in response to pressure from state attorneys general and other critics, who argued that the section facilitated prostitution. Much of Craigslist's adult advertising market was shifted to other sites, with Backpage being the main beneficiary.

Former critics of Craigslist were forced to focus on Backpage, which resisted moves to censor the site until January 2017; Backpage closed their adult section before the congressional hearings.

Plaintiff Backpage.com

Plaintiff Backpage.com operates an online classified advertising service located at www.backpage.com. It is the world's second largest online advertising service and hosts millions of ads from all over the world every month that appear on Backpage.com's website. Ads are categorized by state and city, then by local area, job, community, trade, purchase- Sales, rent, real estate, musicians, jobs, dating, adults and services. The ads themselves are created and posted by users of Backpage.com, who pay $5–$10 to post ads in the adult section, and $1 to post ads in the dating section, or otherwise have the opportunity to post ads for free. Backpage.com allows users to pay an ad fee by credit card, in addition to other payment options. See generally Dkt.

Illegal content and illegal activity are prohibited on the Backpage.com Service, either by or pursuant to the Backpage.com Terms of Use. A former. B. Adult content and explicit material are only permitted to be posted in designated adult sections by an adult over the age of 18. The ID prohibits "obscene or obscene and genital or photographs that depict obscene graphics, real or simulated sexual activity or nudity." Id ex AC ("Posting Rules"). Users are advised that any post that exploits a minor in any way will be subject to criminal prosecution and will be reported to CyberTipline for law enforcement."

If a user on ID sees an ad that does not comply with these rules, the user may report the ad to Backpage.com by clicking the Report ad link in the ad, which they retain. Doing so brings the user to a report ad page where he can select whether the ad has "inappropriate or illegal content", "posted too much spam" or "wrong category". In ID F. The webpage directs users to email abuse@backpage. com if the ad "appears to contain images of threats to a child or child exploitation."