Dame Settles Lawsuit With MTA and Launches First Subway Ads

After a three-year legal battle, sexual wellness startup Dame will be able to advertise in the New York subway system for the first time, with the brand planning its largest media buy ever, extending throughout the five boroughs. But even though Dame’s campaign, called “Get In Touch With Yourself,” launches today, it could be a one-off effort, per the settlement with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Dame has been approved to run the brightly colored, abstract campaign, which will continue through at least first quarter 2022, but no further advertising. The brand will have to submit any future work through the same process that shot it down before, according to Dame co-founder and CEO Alexandra Fine. “I feel really proud that our ads will be in the New York City subway. It’s a very big deal for us,” Fine told Adweek. “But we’ll see how it changes policy or makes history. It may be a small step forward that feels like a step sideways.” Dame’s previous ads were rejected by the MTA and Outfront Media, the company that handles ad placements on subways, buses and commuter railroads, because the ads included images of female-targeted sex toys or were deemed “too sexual.” In a lawsuit filed in summer 2019, Dame argued that the ban was discriminatory and gender-based, pointing out that ads for erectile dysfunction medication were historically and currently allowed, as were ads for dating apps and other brands with suggestive images and thinly veiled sexual references. The MTA’s policy violated Dame’s right to “free speech, due process and equal protection under the First and Fourteenth Amendments,” according to the suit. During the protracted fight, Dame collaborated with another women's sexual wellness brand, Unbound, for a campaign called "Approved, Not Approved," calling attention to what the partners called the MTA's arbitrary choices. Its resolution, announced today, paves the way for ads that will drop at a pivotal time for the female pleasure brand, during the holiday gift-giving season ahead and heading into Valentine’s Day early next year, Fine said. The goal is to "advance Dame's work in closing the pleasure gap and set a standard for other sexually-oriented companies in advertising," the brand's statement said. “Get In Touch,” developed and created by Dame’s in-house team, takes a notably different approach than the rejected ads, with Fine saying “we’re a different company than we were three years ago—we still sell sex toys, but we have a much wider range of products now.” The images are abstract, and the full tagline, “Get In Touch With Yourself,” has been shortened to “Get In Touch” for the MTA media buys. There are no product shots. For the language on the ads, the brand asked its consumers for input, polling them on what they thought pleasure looks and feels like. Creatives then pulled quotes directly from fans for copy that reads: “It feels like I’m growing flowers within me,” and “It’s like touching the sunrise.” Fine stopped short of calling the creative tone a concession to the MTA, noting that the presence of her ads “validates these products” and furthers the discussion in public spaces. “We’re saying what we want to say—that pleasure is important,” Fine said. “And I hope it’s the beginning of a shift in understanding that these are health and wellness products and they have a positive impact on people’s lives.” 2 Female Sexual Wellness Companies Call Out the Ad Policies of MTA and Social Platforms

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Sexual Wellness Brand Dame Settles Lawsuit With MTA, Debuts First Subway Campaign

3-year legal battle ends with 'Get In Touch' ads, though the future for the category is uncertain

T.L. Stanley

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