GoldmanSex Loses Domain Battle to Blue Chip Banker

NEW YORK — Adult entertainment portal GoldmanSex will have to turn over its domain name to high-powered investment bank Goldman Sachs after a National Arbitration Forum ruled in favor of the financial institution.

The New York-based banking company submitted a complaint to the NAF in July, arguing the domain name would cause confusion and contained links to objectionable adult material. The NAF mediates disputes over Internet domain names.

GoldmanSex provides a large global directory for adult entertainment — mostly strip clubs and escort agencies — targeted to business travelers. Site owner Rob Muller, who resides in the Netherlands, says the site contains listings for 5,000 clubs and escort agencies in 300 of the largest business centers in the world.

"I cannot imagine that a [potential] client of Goldman Sachs would misspell the domain name into 'Goldmansex,'” Muller said. "I also find it hard to believe that GS clients would think this is a new kind of product line of GS. In that case, they really have to work on their corporate image."

While Muller tried and failed to persuade the NAF that the feud between the companies was a trademark dispute that he should win, the arbitrator ruled Muller had illegally registered the domain name.

"This domain name dispute centers on an attempt by respondent to recharacterize the domain dispute in the instant case as a trademark dispute, when in fact, the real issue is the respondent's bad faith registration and use of the disputed domain name," NAF arbitrator Robert Pfeuffer said.

The Goldmansex site is no longer operational. A landing page details Muller’s response to the NAF ruling and directs users to a similar site, Goldmensex.com. There also is a PayPal link for users to donate funds to Muller’s appeal, which is being handled by attorney Bernard Dietz.

Copyright © 2025 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

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More