Is Playboy set for Singapore after dropping nude pictures? MDA says...
Playboy magazine dropped a bombshell when it announced that it would be dropping nude photographs from its print edition in a revamp starting next March.
With the blessing of founder and editor-in-chief Hugh Hefner, the risque men's publication decided to remove one of its key selling points due to the proliferation of pornography on the Internet.
The announcement comes after Playboy dropped naked photos from its main website Playboy.com last August to enable it to engage a younger audience via social media.
From its circulation peak of 5.6 million in its heyday in the 1970s, its current circulation stands at only 800,000, the BBC reported.
While the unprecedented move might have given rise to the possibility of Playboy appearing on magazine racks in Singapore, the Media Development Authority (MDA) has poured cold water on the suggestion.
Replying to queries from The New Paper, an MDA spokesman said: "It is too preliminary to comment on the revamped Playboy magazine as it has yet to be launched."
PHOTO: AFP
As for Playboy.com, which has been blocked in Singapore since 1996, the MDA spokesman also there were no plans to lift the ban on the website.
Despite its attempts to clean up, the site has digitised archives containing nude content, albeit lying behind a pay wall.
According to MDA, Playboy.com is among a group of websites which are symbolically blocked in Singapore to signal the types of content which the community regards as offensive or harmful and the watchdog body will not be changing its stance on the site.
Known for its nude photo spreads, Playboy has been banned in Singapore since 1959 under the Undesirable Publications Act.
