Pornography has been dominated by a few pan-European producers and distributors, the most notable of which is the Private Media Group that successfully claimed the position previously held by Color Climax Corporation in the early s. Most European countries also have local pornography producers, from Portugal e. Naturalvideo to Serbia e.
Hexor , who face varying levels of competition with international producers. The legal status of pornography varies widely in Europe; its production and distribution are illegal in countries such as Ukraine , Belarus and Bulgaria , while Hungary has liberal pornography laws.
In Albania , pornography is illegal only for producing, delivery, advertising, import, selling and publication of pornographic materials in persons under 18 years old. Child pornography is strictly prohibited. In a prohibition on child pornography was added to the law. Under these regulations the minimum age for buying hardcore pornography is Publication of pornography or material depicting bestiality is illegal.
Pornography is illegal in Belarus. Production, distribution, promotion, exhibition as well as possession with intent of distribution or promotion of pornographic materials or objects of pornographic nature is punished by Belarusian criminal law and results in compulsory community service, fine or up to 4 years imprisonment. In the People's Republic of Bulgaria — pornography was only available to a comparatively limited number of people.
What pornographic materials there were mostly magazines and videocassettes were smuggled into the country. The abandonment of censorship in the early post-communist period resulted in pornography becoming widely available. In the early s pornographic magazines were sold at newsstands, pirated foreign pornographic videocassettes became available and foreign pornographic television stations were accessible.
