Final Decision Deferred On ".xxx" Domains

Hugh Pickens writes "The Associated Press reports that the board of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has deferred a decision until June on whether to create a '.xxx' Internet suffix as an online red-light district, beginning a 70-day process of consultations on a domain that could help parents block access to adult sites. ICM Registry LLC first proposed the '.xxx' domain in 2000, and ICANN has rejected it three times already since then, but an outside panel last month questioned the board's latest rejection in 2007, prompting the board to reopen the bid. Backers of '.xxx' have billed the proposal as a way for the adult-entertainment industry to clean up its act, though some adult sites worry that governments would wind up mandating the use of '.xxx' and that sites with the '.xxx' suffix could easily be blocked by government web filters in the future. 'I am very concerned and fearful of censoring adult material that should be made available for adults. It scares the hell out of me,' says Malcolm Day, head of AdultShop.com, adding that if adult websites weren't allowed to have '.com' domains and could only register under the '.xxx' address, then 'many governments (across the world) would try to block them.'"

Re:Unfounded worry

[tverbeek]

"It seems to me that a government could not legally block the TLD unless porn was actually illegal in that country."

You do realize that in most countries it's the government which creates the laws making things illegal?

Re:Well

[Anonymous Coward]

My hobby is watching porn and masturbating.

Re:Exactly backwards

[S.O.B.]

A kid friendly TLD is another way of saying pedophile friendly TLD.