Despite all of the hulabaloo surrounding the controversial establishment of a domain reserved exclusively to the porn industry, the truth is that it may ultimately amount to no more than a mafia-esque, squeeze-play by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
While card carrying members of the ICM Registry will assure you of the numerous potential benefits to assigning a top-level domain (TLD) to the porn industry, the fact that many of the major players have told ICANN to go screw themselves speaks volumes.
Playboy, YouPorn, xTube, among many others have come out in strong, public opposition to the move since the beginning. A number of law suits have been brought up against both the ICM Registry, and ICANN, by members of the industry who aren’t to happy about having to shell-out the big bucks in order to protect a brand they already own.
The potential benefits of a porn-exclusive domain for producers in terms of SEO, as well as providing a more secure environment for customers are real. Nevertheless, there has been much debate, and good reason to question, whether or not the .xxx domain will ever catch on in the first place.
Predictably, members of the religious right have been highly vocal in addressing their own, familiar objections. The truth is, though, that all of the fuss over the issue may not amount to much when all is said and done.
So what’s the angle, then? Follow the money, of course.
Despite the fact that much of the porn industry has shunned the idea, still, many others have elected to jump on board and it’s safe to say that business is bumping.
As we speak there is an ongoing, mad-rush to grab up any and every potentially profitable .xxx domain-name available to the public that could ever possibly pass across a porn producer’s filthy, little mind. At around $99 bucks a pop, we’re talking some serious coin.
Sales are coming in from some unexpected sources, too. A number of major universities, hospitals, and other institutions have begun buying up some of the most obvious choices for (mis) use of their own namesakes.
According to the Associated Press, organizations such as the University of Kansas have already coughed-up big-time in order to protect themselves from the embarrassment of seeing their organization’s namesake being cleverly corrupted by members of the adult entertainment business.
Still, others see the .xxx domain as a tremendous investment opportunity and are buying up potentially valuable domain names by the bushel in hopes of cashing in later on down the road. One thing is certain which is that the .xxx domain faces an uphill battle unless it can somehow manage to get more of the industry’s major players on board. With the uncertainty that surrounds the future success of the .xxx domain, though, the only players ensured of profiting at the moment are those on the receiving end of the fees.
