History of Kink.com

Kink is a pornographic production company specialising in BDSM and related fetish porn. It began in 1997 with a single site, Hogtied.com, and is now a large network of fetish sites with 17,000 individual scenes on 90 channels. Kink has seen its fair share of controversy, but is known for being the number one fetish porn production company because of its expertise. Kink.com, Kink Studios, Hogtied.com and Behind Kink are trade names for Cybernet Entertainment LLC, the parent company which owns the studio.

Kink.com History

Kink was founded by Peter Acworth in 1997. At the time, Acworth was a doctoral student at Columbia University, and his inspiration for founding Kink came after he read an article about a man who netted himself £250,000 by starting a porn company. Acworth says he had a lifelong interest in BDSM, and that seemed to him the logical way to go. Thus, he started the site, Hogtied, using licensed content from other fetish porn providers. As soon as Hogtied began to make several thousand dollars per day, Acworth gave up his studies to work in porn full time.

Within a year, Acworth discovered sales were dropping because other sites were also using the same licensed videos, and having moved to San Fransisco, he began producing his own content. Often appearing in this himself, he employed models he found through Craigslist and photographer friends, and in 2000, opened his second fetish site, Fucking Machines. Since then, Acworth, the CEO of Kink, has started over 25 other subscription sites, all of which have attracted top fetish specialists because Kink has a name for only producing consensual fetish porn.

Kink's Mission

Kink's Mission Statement lists seven core values including upholding a safe, sane and consensual environment, operating with honesty and integrity, making the workplace fun and creative, being respectful, encouraging feedback and dialogue, and remaining proud of what the company does. Their full mission statement opens with:

Kink's mission is to empower people to discover, explore and indulge their kinky side.

Our vision is to be the most trusted destination for entertainment, education and experiences that inspire people to explore their kinky side without shame.

The Castle

According to an article in the British newspaper, The Guardian: In 2006, Acworth purchased the 200,000 sq ft Armory in San Fransisco. The building is a 1914 reproduction of a medieval castle and comes complete with dungeons suitable for filming his style of porn. The national landmark became the headquarters for his growing network of BDSM and fetish subscription sites, including an interactive live page and a news site, and has housed public tours, shows, workshops and other porn events.

In 2007, a group called Mission Armory Community Collective staged a protest outside the building, opposing Kink.com's presence and usage of the monument. However, there were plans to demolish part of the landmark to make way for a new property development, and Kink was able to gather supporters who wanted the building left as it was, as did Kink. With the then Mayor of San Fransisco, Gavin Newsom expressing concern over Kink's use of the armory, the planning department called a special meeting to review the company's use of the building. The meeting was well attended by both sides, but the planning commission ruled in favor of Kink, stating the company had not violated any law or zoning requirement.

Kink.com continued to use the building, letting studios to other porn makers, and, in 2013, set up webcam studios for independent, live cam models. Kink stopped using the Armory for productions in 2017, and in 2018, Acworth sold the building for $65 million.

Scandal stories

Kink.com has had its fair share of controversy. In 2013, Peter Acworth was arrested for possession of cocaine. The news came as a shock because Acworth, as CEO of Kink, was known for running the production company on strict, ethical lines. He'd also been applauded in publications such as the Wall Street Journal for revolutionising the porn industry and doing good for the area around the company's building, the Armory.

Former Kink models have also laid claims against the company, saying they were injured while on set but were not offered compensation. One model said she had been left with a long-lasting injury and was offered money to keep quiet. The use of Trimix and other erectile dysfunction drugs has also been called into question, although the use of these performance enhancers is in no way limited to Kink.com, and is common practice in the porn industry.

The British newspaper, The Guardian, carried an article in 2014, based on an Associated Press (San Fransisco) piece, relating the story of how Kink was fined $78,000 for allowing unsafe practices. These included dangerous workplace conditions and allowing performers to have sex without condoms. Kink appealed the fine, stating the action was politically motivated because the inspection was prompted by a formal complaint filed against Kink.com by the Aids Healthcare Foundation, a Los Angeles-headquartered advocacy group.

Kink cut its ties with James Deen in 2015 because of allegations of sexual assault made against him by several former porn models. Deen denied the allegations, but there was a public outcry and his, until then, high standing in the adult entertainment world suffered a heavy blow. As far as we can discover, no conviction followed, and although the allegations remain as historical fact, nothing has been proved. Deen continues to be one of the porn world's most enduring male stars.

Output and Sites

As of August 2022, the tour pages of the Kink.com website listed 90 channels of porn from nine studios. Kink itself, plus Submissed, Twisted Factory, DDF Network, Fetish Network, GOATE Studios, Bizarre Videos, Filth Syndicate, Wasteland and Bleu Films.

Of the 90 channels, 27 are Kink exclusives.
* Scene count as at August 2022

The website also lists seven series, 58 categories across its straight and gay sites, 4,389 models, a live-cam site, an online store, and 16,947 scenes. Kink also houses successful gay and bisexual fetish channels such as Bound Gods and Banana Jacks.

Review Sites Scores for the Kink.com Network

Kink.com and its sites score highly in adult review sites where independent reviewers visit the site, tell readers what to expect, and score the sites according to the reviewer's set of guidelines. The method of scoring varies, but all reviews are objective. Here is what the top review sites have to say about Kink.

Kink.com Awards

In 2022, Kink won the AVN Award for Best BDSM Movie or Limited Series for 'Diary of a Madman', a Kink/Digital Sin production. Two years earlier, they had won the Best BDSM Production award for 'School of Submission', and before that, they had won many other industry awards. Below is a list of those won between 2009 and 2018.

Company information

Kink.com, along with Kink Studios, LLC, Hogtied.com and Behindkink.com are DBAs for Cybernet Entertainment LLC, the parent company that operates the studio.

In March 2018, Alison Boden, the former VP of Technology, became the new CEO of Kink.com. She helmed the company until founder Peter Acworth returned in 2021.

Kink.com has not been without controversy, but it has also never been without fans. Since its founding from a college dorm room in 1997, it has grown to be the biggest and most respected fetish porn production company in the USA, probably in the world. With multiple sites exploring the reaches of BDSM and other fetishes and producing only high-quality adult entertainment, it remains as popular now as it has ever been.

Its website, Kink Unlimited, offers 90 channels, over 17,000 scenes and 58 categories of fetish porn. We have a special-offer membership available, giving access to the full network for a large discount. See our Kink Unlimited page for details.

Kink's documentary site about the company and what it produces can be found at behindkink.com

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