LUXEMBOURG — Manwin, one of the largest players in the online adult arena, has demanded that ICM Registry block attempts to register any of its 57 domain names or similar misleading names in the .XXX sponsored top-level domain.
Manwin alternatively asked ICM to register each of its 57 domain names as .XXX domains without any registration, processing or administrative fee or charge.
In a letter to ICM CEO Stuart Lawley, Manwin said that each of their preexisting domain names and trademarks have been "clearly communicated" and that the company must "take steps to block any attempts to register any of them, or any similar misleading names in the XXX TLD."
“From a technical and administrative standpoint, entering our trademarks and obvious similarities into some kind of a blacklist maintained by ICM Registry is a very simple process,” said Fabian Thylmann, managing partner at Manwin.
Manwin, which owns numerous blue-chip online adult franchises, including Brazzers, Twistys, YouPorn and others, said that registration of its domain names without its consent "will constitute a violation of Manwin’s rights."
“The misuse of our intellectual property will not be tolerated,” Thylmann said.
Manwin said that it believes "that the onus is on ICM to honor and protect the rights of the adult content industry in their domain names and hopes that ICM will act responsibly to do so."
Diane Duke, executive director of the Free Speech Coalition, told XBIZ she expects more adult companies to follow Manwin's initiative with ICM.
"It is absurd that ICM expects adult businesses to pay ICM not to violate their trademarks," she said. "ICM has been put on notice."
