LOS ANGELES — ICM Registry has permanently removed hundreds, possibly thousands of celebrities' names from the new .xxx domain as a protective measure.
The high-profile celebs have had their .xxx address placed into a permanent "reserved" status, according to a report by London's The Register.
The move appears to be an effort to prevent cybersquatters or adult webmasters from registering domains such as BritneySpears.xxx as a way to drive traffic.
The report said it also means that many celebrities will not have to pay to protect their names in the forthcoming .xxx "sunrise period" or take cybersquatters to court in the future.
ICM has not published its list of reserved names.
The criteria for inclusion appears to be based on one's notoriety, rather than perceived sex appeal. It also includes the names of deceased high-profile people such as Elvis.xxx and MarilynMonroe.xxx, as well as politicians such as President Obama.
