FSC on Newest Dot XXX Domains

from FSC http://fscblogger.wordpress.com

On Tuesday night, the .XXX domain made a rather inauspicious debut with its first live website, casting.xxx. Please, feel free to visit the site on your own – or not.

Casting.xxx is the first site to roll out under the “Founders” program for the .XXX domain, which offered 35 webmasters the opportunity to get the jump on 1,500 addresses. The implied benefit of being a “founder” was that you would have an opportunity buy some pretty prime .xxx real estate and be the first to get at some good names.

Not sure what to expect, we visited casting.xxx. We didn’t notice any extra security measures for age verification – in fact, not even an RTA banner. There was the standard 2257 compliance, a rather long disclaimer instructing the viewer that they must be 18 to enter, and a rather simple mouse click allowed us into the site. Inside, a very clean-looking hardcore amateur site with a casting couch motif. The affiliate program was not yet available and the name of the registered owner was nowhere to be found.

But Domaincite.com found it. Here’s what they had to say about the parent company of the newest stop on the Internet:

“Casting.xxx is registered to a Really Useful Ltd, which appears to have been set up purely to build sites on .xxx domains, of which casting.xxx is the first of several.”

So, the company was created to build sites specifically for .XXX and it looks like they may be founding their own affiliate program.

What else should we say? What else can we say?

FSC opposes the .XXX domain and urges all adult webmasters to STAY .COM. The domain will fragment the Internet; put adult sites into a content-based category that encourages censorship by anti-adult entities; makes it easier for underage users to find adult content online; and will cost adult webmasters and trademark holders MILLIONS in unnecessary fees. Bad for the Internet – bad for business.

Ironically, just days after Casting.xxx moved in, ICM Registry received a housewarming gift on behalf of the entire .XXX domain. The folks at Morality in Media, today, called for a Federal investigation of ICM Registry and all those involved with the .XXX domain.

Welcome to the neighborhood, y’all.

And for the record; FSC also opposes Morality in Media’s month-long anti-pornography “Porn Harms” campaign. – jc