.XXX Decision Could Come as Early as Wednesday

MARINA DEL REY, Calif. — An ICANN meeting May 10 could make the proposed .XXX top-level domain a reality sooner than anticipated. Or, the behind-the-scenes maneuvering could continue.

While those who have kept a close eye on .XXX have watched the issue rise and fall over the past two years at a series of international meetings, the ultimate fate of the TLD could be decided away from ICANN’s regular conferences, according to Tom Hymes, communications director for the Free Speech Coalition.

“There could be an up or down vote on the issue as early as Wednesday,” Hymes told XBIZ.

According to Hymes, ICANN made it clear at the Wellington meeting in March that .XXX could be approved prior to the next official meeting in Marrakech, Morocco this June. Hymes also said that research by the FSC revealed that the ICANN board did not need Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC) support to approve .XXX.

What ICANN does require for .XXX is input from the adult entertainment community. While industry feedback has not been a new issue in the .XXX saga, concerns raised by GAC and others led ICANN to open a forum for additional industry comment April 20 to gauge sentiment among adult webmasters, rather than relying solely claims of widespread support from ICM Registry, the company that would be responsible for handling .XXX domain registrations.

To date, the lion’s share of the nearly 400 comments have voiced opposition to .XXX. The negative response to .XXX has been mirrored on GFY, with Brandon Shalton leading the charge.

While Shalton praised those who had spoken out for taking the time and having the courage to do so, he expressed dismay that so many adult webmasters had remained silent.

“Industry support has always been a key part of whether or not .XXX goes through,” Shalton told XBIZ. “Two years ago, there were pro-.XXX emails, but you’d be hard-pressed to find them now. ICM’s claim that it has industry support, just isn’t accurate and the posts show that.”

According to Shalton, ICANN won’t find posts in favor of .XXX because adult webmasters don’t really have a vested interest in the TLD going through.

Still, the fear remains that ICANN will surmise that the lack of volume from those in opposition to .XXX should be interpreted to mean that this time around those in favor of the TLD have simply chosen not to comment. A concern, according to Shalton, that is exacerbated by claims from Stuart Lawley, president of ICM Registry, that .XXX has overwhelming support from the adult industry.

“As much a fuss as a few of us have publicly made, ICANN can look at the lack of large responses as a sign that ICM must indeed have support of the adult community,” Shalton wrote on GFY.

Whether or not ICANN will approve .XXX on Wednesday remains a murky question. However, if the organization chooses to do so, Hymes believes that they “have all their ducks in a row.”

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

AEBN Celebrates 25th Anniversary

The Adult Entertainment Broadcast Network (AEBN) is celebrating its 25th year in business this week.

Nebraska Legislature Passes Republican's Age Verification Bill With No Votes Against It

Nebraska’s unicameral legislature has passed the state’s version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists.

Performers in Meta Blacklisting Lawsuit Seek to Preserve Antitrust Claims

Adult Performance Artists Guild board officers Alana Evans, Kelly Pierce and Ruby have informed a California court that, although they want to drop their lawsuit claiming that Meta conspired with OnlyFans to blacklist rival premium fan platforms’ talent, they may still have antitrust claims that they may pursue in the future.

FSC, Co-Plaintiffs to Ask US Supreme Court to Review Constitutionality of Texas Age Verification Law

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) and its co-plaintiffs in the challenge to Texas’ controversial age verification law have filed a petition before the United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit asking to stay its recent upholding the law because they intend to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to review the law’s constitutionality.

FSC Vows to Fight Florida Age Verification Law

Free Speech Coalition (FSC) issued a statement vowing to continue fighting Florida’s age verification law, which was signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday as part of a comprehensive bill targeting minors’ use of social media.

Kansas Republican Aims to Create New Bureaucracy to 'Investigate' Porn Websites

Republican state legislators succeeded Monday in moving forward Kansas’ version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists, despite serious concerns raised by House Democrats about the cost of establishing a new bureaucracy tasked with investigating websites for pornographic content.

SK Intertainment Launches 'Skinfluential Management' Agency, FansFuel Joint Venture

Mr. Skin/Mr. Man parent company SK Intertainment has launched new creator agency Skinfluential Management, as well as a new joint venture with Showbizz Media's creator stats and affiliate marketing platform, FansFuel.

Industry Attorney, Free Speech Champion Clyde DeWitt Passes Away at 75

Noted industry attorney Clyde DeWitt passed away on Friday in Las Vegas at 75, according to friends and colleagues.

APClips Names Avery Jane 'Creator of the Month'

APClips has named Avery Jane its Creator of the Month for March.

JustFor.fans Offers Gumroad Users Platform to Sell NSFW Artwork

JustFor.fans (JFF) is offering Gumroad users a platform to sell NSFW artwork after the latter banned adult content.

Show More