Business journalist Patricia Nilsson has spent five years investigating the hidden leaders of the global pornography industry.
Her research uncovered the anonymous figures who control the sector from the shadows, often tech professionals and bankers with little interest in pornography itself.
Unlike past porn moguls who were publicly known, today's industry owners prefer to remain unseen.
Nilsson highlighted the paradox of industry leaders demanding privacy while online workers face public exposure.
"Online sex workers literally have to bare it all," she said.
"So it's terrible if the people profiting then have the gall to say: 'I want to protect my anonymity and I don't really want to be associated with sex work.'"
The Ghost Behind MindGeek
Nilsson was the first to identify Bernd Bergmair, owner of MindGeek from 2013 to 2023, known as the world's largest pornography company operator.
Bergmair, an Austrian former investment banker, was described as a ghost in the industry, focused on profits rather than the content itself.
"He seemed entirely uninterested in the sex [work] that underpinned the empire he was buying," Nilsson said.
Bergmair ensured the corporate structure was secure to maintain dividend payouts, illustrating a stark contrast to the public-facing figures of earlier decades.
In 2020, MindGeek removed millions of unverified videos amid concerns over abusive content, marking a significant moment in industry accountability.
Nilsson's work has brought much-needed scrutiny to a sector influential in shaping the internet and modern culture.
Her book, Guilty Pleasure: The Pornification of the Internet, the Economy, and Everything Else, challenges readers to understand the industry as a major economic force and reflect on its implications for work and society.
