Amid news of mergers and acquisitions in the online space (Gannett/Pointroll and Scripps/Shopzilla), comes word of a new and distinct Internet domain for adult entertainment.
Get this, ICANN
(Internet Corp. for Assigned Names and Numbers), approved a proposal to create a Web domain with the letters, ".xxx," denoting adult and pornographic content. So, while Amsterdam will always be famous
for its freewheeling red light district, Bangkok too, pleasure-seekers won't need to venture nearly that far for similar experiences - in cyberspace.
Perhaps ICANN figures that setting up a
clearly denoted adult sector on the Web will help rein in porn-related spam, prevent children from accidentally browsing adult sites, and other vexing issues. But will the creation of a ".xxx" domain
help? Can such content really be regulated or walled off? Will adult sites maintain their ".com" presences as well? Would all such sites eventually be compelled to register as a ".xxx?" What are the
incentives likely to be for going the ".xxx" route?
ICM, the company that brought the proposal to ICANN, plans to charge $60 each for up to 500,000 names it will register on the ".xxx" domain.
According to the Associated Press, $10 of the fee is earmarked for a non-profit group comprised of adult sites, privacy, free speech, and child welfare advocates, which works with parents to teach
them about how to keep their kids safe on the Web.
Apparently, sites using a ".xxx" would have to adhere to industry best practices recommendations. Hmmm, we wonder what those will look like...
Maybe something about fraud and spam? We suppose.
If the U.S. Commerce Dept. approves the ICANN proposal, the domain could exist by the end of the year.