Sex Toys News

An Australian pharmacy has come under fire from a strident feminist campaign group for selling a hand-held sex toy on their website.

A description for the toy said: You'll be be her first and only. This virgin is waiting to be touched for the very first time.

The Virgin Pussy Palm Pal was soon removed from the retailer's website after complaints from Collective Shout. The group's director of operations, Coralie Alison, told Daily Mail Australia:

We got a tip off about the product and then I emailed them this morning.

Collective Shout encouraged their followers to whinge on social media so the Daily Mail had plenty of angry tweets to include in the story, eg:

We believe chemists are supposed to be selling products with medicinal and health benefits rather than promoting paedophilic fantasies for profit.

Chemist Warehouse atrocious that you're selling Virgin Palm Pal. 'Tight as a virgin

There's a pretty eye-catching display at Harmony on Oxford Street... Motörhead-branded sex toys (or 'Pleasure Tools') that have landed in time for the Christmas shopping season.

The Pleasure Tools range includes branded vibrators called 'Overkill' and 'Born to Lose'. Motörhead do have a track actually called 'Vibrator', which we're guessing is where they got the idea.

A big thumbs up for the person on Harmony's product development team who thought they spotted a gap that needed filling... so to speak.

Although robots built for sex are not yet available to the public, the Campaign Against Sex Robots has already launched. The group believes that companies should cease developing sex robots with artificial intelligence on grounds of feminism. Presumably the group fears that sex robots will somehow challenge the social control structures related to sex. The group has published its aims on its website:

• We believe the development of sex robots further objectifies women and children.
• The vision for sex robots is underscored by reference to prostitute-john exchange which relies on recognizing only the needs and wants of the buyers of sex, the sellers of sex are not attributed subjectivity and reduced to a thing (just like the robot).
• The development of sex robots and the ideas to support their production show the immense horrors still present in the world of prostitution which is built on the "perceived" inferiority of women and children and therefore justifies their uses as sex objects.
• We propose that the development of sex robots will further reduce human empathy that can only be developed by an experience of mutual relationship.
• We challenge the view that the development of adults and child sex robots will have a positive benefit to society, but instead further reinforce power relations of inequality and violence.
• We take issue with those arguments that propose that sex robots could help reduce sexual exploitation and violence towards prostituted persons, pointing to all the evidence that shows how technology and the sex trade coexist and reinforce each other creating more demand for human bodies.

Engineers have long strove to make sex toys and dolls as life like as possible. Realistic looks and feels have been about as far as the manufactures have been able to come so far. In the last few years, however, the artificial intelligence technology has opened a brave new world for sex toy innovation.

Lead campaigner Kathleen Richardson, a robot anthropologist and [feminist] ethicist at De Montfort University in Leicester spouted:

When I first started looking into the subject I thought, 'oh sex robots, that's harmless and perhaps these robots would reduce demand for real women and children.

But then as I researched the subject more I found that the opposite was true, that rather than reduce the objectification of women, children and also men and transgender people, these robots would contribute and reinforce their position in society [as objects].

True Companion, a company which as been making sex dolls for years and claims to have introduced the first sex robot- the Roxxxy. The company explained on its website and in statements:

Roxxxy knows your likes and dislikes, carries on a discussion and expresses her love to you and [can] be your loving friend. She can talk to you, listen to you, and feel your touch. She can even have an orgasm.

Roxxxy provides physical and sexual pleasure but also provides social interaction and engagement It's customizing technology to provide a perfect partner,  she's not meant to replace a real partner but is meant as a supplement.

As long as we're not hurting anyone, there's no problem with it.

Comment: Robert the sex robot

19th September 2015. From Sergio and phantom on the Melon Farmers Forum

A question or two for the anti-sex-robot feministas:

a) is a dildo/vibrator a primitive form of sex robot?
b) if so, are you prepared to disavow the use of them?

In truth, men have no more interest in having sex with robots than they have in having sex with trees or a cup of tea. Meanwhile, women like the idea of pleasuring themselves with plastic objects. Men generally do not.

So, if the sale of sex aids is anything to go by, sex robots are more likely to be called `Big John` than `Melinda`.

So, dear feminists.
Women may like vibrators. Feminists may like vibrators.
It does therefore not follow that men like vibrating holes.
By publicly protesting against the latter you are merely broadcasting the former.

And as for academic Kathleen Richardson, being a  'robot anthropologist' and 'ethicist'. Well anthropology is the study of humanity, so robots are human, extreme feminists are ethical and 2 + 2 = 5!

Nice'n'Naughty, the multi-award winning chain, are bringing rock to the high street across the UK in the form of the Motörhead Official Pleasure Collection.

That's right, with all the buzz around Lemmy and the boys at the moment, they have now put their name to a range of pleasure toys, all decorated with the band's iconic logos and branding.

Motörhead are currently celebrating 40 years in the music industry with both a new album and tour. With a song called Vibrator on their debut album, it seemed inevitable that they would release a range of vibes one day!

The range consists of two bullets and two classic torpedo vibes, and are named after their hits Ace of Spades and Overkill . The black and silver vibrators are sure to rock your world with a power that can only be expected from the 'loudest band on earth'.

Senior Manager of Nice'n'Naughty, Philip Charter-Price said: "You don't have to be a rock fan to appreciate what Motörhead have brought to the music industry, and equally, these vibes have the style and distinction to rock anyone's world, be them fans of Motörhead or the Spice Girls."

Motörhead - The Official Pleasure Collection will be available in all 11 Nice'n'Naughty stores and via the website . Look out for some heavy metal that will ensure an Overnight Sensation and guarantee some Aftershock to your Orgasmatron in a Nice'n'Naughty near you.

Recently, a company called Tzu Technologies, LLC began suing makers of sex toys for infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,368,268 . This resulted in more than a few news stories (and probably a few snickers as well). But the case also shows how our broken patent system is preventing innovation in many spaces, including those we don't traditionally think about. Looking closely at the patent, and specifically at what Tzu Technologies actually claims to own, it is clear that this patent, regardless of its exciting subject matter, deserves to be called stupid.

Tzu Technologies' patent, titled Method and Device for Interactive Virtual Control of Sexual Aids Using Digital Computer Networks is a patent related to teledildonics . Essentially, computer controlled sex toys.

Tzu Technologies recently sued a bunch of small startups in the sex toy space, claiming they infringed this patent. Comingle, for example and according to their website, is a four-person team that is developing open-source sex technology. Also sued was Kickstarter, presumably for allowing another defendant, Holland Haptics, to raise money for their product the Freeble .

As this 1993 Chicago Tribune article shows, the idea of remotely stimulating a partner was nothing new in 1998 (the year the application for the patent was filed). Nor was it unknown how to do it. Howard Stern (in)famously engaged in some of his own teledildonics in the 1980s, that was later reenacted [NSFW] in his 1997 movie Private Parts .

Given this history, you might expect that, in 1998, patent applicants would need to come up with some new and non-obvious way of using a computer to control a sex toy. But like many patents that we have labeled Stupid, that's not what happened. Or at least, that's not what the inventors claimed .

Below is claim 8 of the patent, which Tzu Technologies seems to be asserting. This claim is ridiculously broad. Annotations, in bold, have been added to show just how broadly it can be read:

8. A stimulation system comprising:

[a] a hand-operable input device [a microphone] for generating a command signal [electrical signal] in response to an input [sound wave] received from a first user;

[b] a first user interface [the radio broadcast system] connected to said input device [the microphone] , said first user interface generating a control signal [radio waves] based upon the command signal [electrical signal] ;

[c] a second user interface [a radio] remotely located from said first user interface [the radio broadcast system] , said second user interface receiving the control signal [the radio waves] ; and,

[d] a stimulation device [a stereo speaker] receiving the control signal [the radio waves] from said second user interface [the radio] , said stimulation device imparting stimulation to a second user in response to the control signal [you get the idea] .

Ultimately, claim 8 of this patent is nothing more than the idea of teledildonics, dressed up in input devices signals and interfaces. That's what makes this patent, and these lawsuits, so frustrating. There was nothing novel, nonobvious, or even patentable about this claim. It never should have issued. Doing it with a computer (literally) does not make something patentable.

More and more, everyday items are incorporating software and networking technology. Unfortunately, that means more and more everyday items are at risk of being said to infringe overbroad, vague patents that never should have issued. As this patent shows, the problems with the patent system have the potential to impact many diverse fields, and until we find a way for small companies to quickly and efficiently shut down these patent trolls, we will continue to hurt innovators who are merely trying to make life more interesting.

Hundreds of sex toys have been spotted hanging from power lines across a US city.

The white and bright orange dildos have appeared in recent days across Portland, Oregon, sparking laughter, blushes and a lot of photos.

So as to be able to throw them up and wrap them round cables, the phallic toys have been strung together in pairs.

Portland Office of Neighborhood Involvement spokeswoman Lisa Leddy said the department had received numerous reports of the x-rated sights. A spokesman for public utility Portland General Electric said he did not believe the products posed a fire hazard.

Update: All is revealed

21st July 2015. See article from vice.com

The woman responsible for stringing up dildos all throughout Portland has finally explained herself. In an anonymous interview with VICE , she says that she and her friends wound up with over 10,000 defective dildos after a local sex shop realized they couldn't sell them. So they did the only thing they could think of doing with 10,000 dildos... they threw them all over the city's power lines. She said:

It had to be done. I have no idea why, but it had to, she says. Dick-tossing is an exercise in happiness. It was just a fun, hilarious thing to do.

A woman caused a minor traffic accident recently because she was pleasuring herself with a sex toy. The woman, described as being in her 30s, was reportedly driving her Mini when she suddenly lurched forward and shunted a stationary van.

The driver of the van later explained that it was his first day on the job and when he was later called into the company office, based in Cirencester, he feared he was about to be fired.

However his bosses told him that he wasn't to blame as the incident had been caught on CCTV, and that the film had caught something... interesting. Woman crashes her car while pleasuring herself with a sex toy. The CCTV footage apparently showed the woman exit her vehicle holding a pink Rampant Rabbit sex toy and hurriedly doing up her trousers.

To the casual observer, the black flag with unfamiliar white symbols looked out of place among the colourful outfits and banners at London's gay pride march.

CNN certainly thought so, running photographs of the flag above a banner headline, saying: Isis flag spotted at gay pride event. The segment was billed as an exclusive and the network even lined up one of its top security analysts, Peter Bergen, to discuss its appearance.

However the flag was a spoof, with the apparent Arabic script actually being pictures of dildos, dongs and butt plugs.

Lucy Pawle, a CNN journalist, didn't spot the subtleties and went on air being surprised that no-one else had reacted to the flag.  She said:

This man dressed in black and white waving what appears to be a very bad mimicry of the Isis flag, but a clear attempt to mimic the Isis flag, the black and white flag with the distinctive lettering.

She also said that she had alerted the police to its presence.

The news clip has now been deleted.

A US company that manufactures condoms says it has developed a new wearable tech female condom equipped with a vibrating ring that is able to make a woman orgasm every time.

According to IXu, LLC, the designers of the new product, explain that, apart from providing protection from pregnancy and STDs, the new condom, called VA w.o.w, is a wireless, Bluetoooth-enabled product that has a heart or star-shaped vibrating sleeve or outer ring that helps to bring women to orgasm during sex.

The wireless-controlled vibrator nestles against the vulva, preventing the condom from being pushed deeper into the vagina, and stimulates the clitoris with a buzzing vibration.

A study involving 50 participants, sponsored by the company, found that 100% of female users had an orgasm by the fourth use. 70% of participants had an orgasm the first time they used VA w.o.w. About 84% had an orgasm by second use, and 100% by the fourth use.

The company said it is waiting for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to formerly license its new VA w.o.w in the U.S., but the product will be available in the European market in the next 18 months.

The author of 50 Shades of Grey is being sued over inadequate sex lubricant.

Last week, Tania Warchol filed a class-action lawsuit in California claiming that the Fifty Shades of Grey Come Alive Pleasure Gel For Her failed to deliver on its promise of sexual gratification and improved orgasms. (The suit names author Erika Mitchell (EL James) and Delaware corporation Lovehoney as defendants.)

Warchol is suing on behalf of everybody who bought this over the last four years, and is seeking a refund and punitive damages. She is claiming that the sex gel violates California's unfair competition and false advertising laws. The complaint reads:

Based on Defendants' representations, Plaintiff believed the Product has powerful aphrodisiac qualities and would increase her sexual pleasure as advertised. The Product did not deliver the purported benefits.

Smart internet connected sex toys are at risk from hackers, a security firm has claimed. The company says that the toys can be easily hacked, allowing people to intercept communications and take control of them. They also warned that one of the toys even captured video, which could easily be accessed.

Security experts examined a series of adult toys that link to an app. Most working by interfacing with a smartphone app. The allows them to be controlled remotely, or to download new software from the internet.

Joe Bursell of Pen Test partners said the firm decided to investigate the market, which has dozens of products already available and in development. He couldn't come up with much of a reason why anybody should hack sex toy communications though, saying:

If an attacker could intercept the devices communications they could portray their victim as a monumentally inept in the stimulation department, which would be hilarious and tragic in equal measure.

There was no apparent encryption during the registration process, meaning anyone snooping on the line could get hold of login information

One of the biggest hits at the recent AVN Expo in LAs Vegas was The Teddy Love.

He's a bear affixed with a protruding tongue that vibrates at a high frequency when you press on its right ear. The Teddy Love has a very specific niche, it retails for about a $100, and seems to intrigue everyone he meets.

Toy developers Wendy Adams and Robert Harmon described it as a paradigm shift.  Adams said:

It's for men and women. You can leave it out in plain sight. And you can cuddle with it. The best part about it is it doesn't have to come up for air.

After months of gestation, the Teddy Love was released in late December. More than 2,000 have been sold since, according to the company.

Taiwan's media is reporting on a project underway to build a sex theme park. It is part of a nearly 40-mile coastal Romantic Boulevard. The Boulevard will feature some less scandalous stuff: heart-shaped arches, a glass church, scenery for wedding photos--but it will also feature the sex themed park. It's likely to look something like a similar park in South Korea called Jeju Loveland, which has statues of things like giant genitals and people having threesomes.

Called the Romantic Boulevard's finale, the park will also have educational videos and sex toys, as well as what that site calls interactive facilities.

There will also be a hotel nearby, just in case visitors want turn their feelings into actions, an official, Shih Chao-hui, says. He explains the reasoning behind the whole idea: We want people to fall in love with Taiwan as well as fall in love while in Taiwan .

The central government's tourism department isn't thrilled, but the organisers hope that the promise of sexy revenue will bring them around.

The adult virtual world Red Light Center has confirmed a virtual reality version of the site that will use the Oculus Rift headset

Utherverse Digital is making its X-rated virtual world Red Light Center compatible with Oculus Rift.  The virtual world lets you visit bars, hotels and clubs for virtual adult fun

The naughty online destination, based on Amsterdam's red light area, will effectively become the first massively multiplayer online game available for the virtual reality headset.

Utherverse CEO told VentureBeat in an interview:

Porn and sex and social interaction is universal. It appeals to almost everybody. This is yet another example of porn and sex leading technology forward.

Red Light Center works like Second Life or any other virtual world - letting you create an avatar and interact with other players as well as non-playable characters (NPCs). The site originally launched in 2005 and, according to Shuster, has around 25 million registered users who pay a monthly subscription.

Award-Nominated leather brand Rouge have teamed up with renowned retailer Nice 'n' Naughty and revered pro-kink expert Jackson Rocco in a unique three-way partnership that caters for the ongoing upsurge in demand for fetish and BDSM products.

Using Rocco's internationally-acclaimed android app of The Book of Filthy Sex Games , readers will for the first time be able to access directly specifically chosen Rouge and Nice 'n' Naughty BDSM gear and toys featured in the app's sixty-nine session 'recipes' for fun and safe kink play.

Rouge ranges featured include its luxury padded ankle cuffs, blindfolds and adjustable wrist to neck restraints, all made using exquisite, quality leather from trusted tanneries. Nice 'n' Naughty items include bestseller essentials like vibrators, plugs, lube and massage oils. App users will be able to visualise and learn exactly what item of equipment each kinky practice requires while also offering the chance to shop and order instantly from their smart-phones.

The collaboration will not only be promoted by in-store 10,000 flyers and tags but be buttressed by live workshops on safer adult play, as well as regular blogs on jacksonrocco.com. Additionally, Nice 'n' Naughty shoppers will also be able to claim exclusive free apps (originally priced £6.99) of The Book of Filthy Sex Games through Google Play, benefiting from a definitive guide to kink heralded as 'a ginormous achievement' by fetish industry critics, and containing a 'wealth of information worth the price of the first section alone.'

A spokesperson for leather manufacturer Rouge Garments UK highlighted the increasing desire for quality bondage gear in the mainstream and praised the bridge-building between experts from the adult industry and the kink scene uniting to provide a modern and educational approach for buyers.

Retailers Nice 'n' Naughty are no strangers to providing customer satisfaction. Founded 15 years ago , they were voted the UK 's Best Adult Retail Chain for six years and the only adult industry firm to receive the Investors in People accreditation. Director Trish Murray states that Nice 'n' Naughty was formed: 

"With one clear aim. To offer the customer a comfortable environment to shop that will stimulate their imaginations, without boundaries or taboos. All our members of staff have the knowledge and training to ensure the customer has the best advice and service in the adult industry".

On Nice 'n' Naughty teaming up with Rouge and Jackson Rocco , Trish Murray adds:

"We have a vast array of products that fulfil desires from vanilla to kink, and to be involved with The Book of Filthy Sex Games app, offers all its readers the perfect space and products to learn, explore and grow.  With the pending release of Fifty Shades of Grey, we have seen a further increase in the demand of quality BDSM items, and we have therefore decided to help our customer further explore their desires with this partnership".

As the fetish world can sometimes appear daunting to newcomers it makes sense for the positive kink championed by the man nicknamed the 'real-life Christian Grey' Jackson Rocco to ally with such established names in the adult industry. "I couldn't be happier', says Rocco:

"For the people I represent it's about care, education, affordability and quality. We have newbie's looking to try things out and experts looking to invest in well-made and robust products. The Rouge stuff looks and feels amazing, while Nice 'n' Naughty couldn't be more helpful. And as both firms are celebrated for their attention to detail and customer service, I have peace of mind that our campaign to give adult players the chance to realize their wildest dreams will continue to happen in the most supportive way possible. All round, this is a very cool project."