Quote Originally Posted by DEVELISH
When do the site needs to have that 2257 disclaimer?

if the site is

hosted in the US?
owned by someone living in the US?
owned by someone outside US / Canada and targeting US / CA?
accepting sales from someone living in the US?
using a US based biller?
accepting sales from a US based customer?

DEVELISH

The US Department of Justice is of the mindset that if you sell to US customers, you need to comply with US law. I can actually understand their reasoning in this matter in that if you sell anything in any particular country that item you sell there has to comply with local laws. If you are selling sexually explicit content or motorcycles or bottled water, when it is sold in a particular country it should comply with local laws. Selling through the Internet is just a relatively new and different animal because there is really no way to put internet content through customs.

For those that believe they are outside the reach of US laws, be aware that 2257 is part of a child pornography statute. By treaty there is cross-border enforcement of child pornography statutes so theoretically the DOJ can reach an offshore entity in two ways --first that the product was sold to a US citizen thus availing the seller of US laws and second that by treaty child pornography statutes have a global reach. Realistically there is little chance of enforcement of 2257 against a non-US entity but it could be done in theory.

I believe that if you are a US entity or selling to US customers, you are theoretically responsible to comply with US law, including 18 USC 2257. I don't believe hosting or billing is enough to establish a nexus, but if you are hosted by a US company or billing through a US biller then most likely you are selling to US end-users anyway.