This post has been updated.
Montreal-based PornHub, reportedly the largest porn site in the world, has launched a new campaign for its premium HD service. In the commercials, characters compare the service to everyday things, and bring the site up in inappropriate situations.
One such commercial depicts a couple grocery shopping and picking cheeses. When the woman calls the man “such a foodie” for picking aged Parmigiano Reggiano, he protests that “it’s the PornHub Premium of cheeses!”
The Consorzio Parmigiano Reggiano, a consortium that unites the producers of the cheese, disagrees. Only a few hours after the commercial was launched, on Aug. 12, the group asked its lawyer to verify whether there are grounds for suing over misuses of the brand. The group also asked Italian and European’s authorities to intervene and protect the cheese’s reputation against any porn associations.
In a statement the group shared with Quartz, the company says the message is “not only unpleasant and unacceptable, but offensive for the producers [of Parmigiano Reggiano] and their work.” Specifically, the consortium contests the use of the specific brand name, which refers to the so-called “king of cheeses,” rather than the more general “parmesan.” This, the consortium says, is a way to capitalize on the notoriety gained by the cheese—a move that the company deems “vulgar,” particularly when associated to an “equally vulgar services.”
Update: PornHub replied to Quartz’s request for comment saying the company “removed the video and uploaded a new censored cheese video:”