What do .xxx domain names mean for you?
(Image: Flickr user SPakhrin under Creative Commons.) So, the world’s first adult domain name extension is finally here. In a saga that’s gone on longer than the wait for a white iPhone, US authorities finally cleared the way for the creation of .xxx domain names in March this year. Domains will initially become available in September (for trademark owners), but general availability (when anyone can register a .xxx domain name) won’t arrive until December. When we asked our customers if they wanted us to offer .xxx domain names for sale, over 70% of respondents said yes, so we’re planning to offer them for sale here, in due course. Watch this space. Triple-X domains explained The idea of .xxx is to provide a clear home for adult content on the internet. In theory, once every adult website is located at a .xxx address, it’ll be easy for people to find them (if that’s what they want), and easy for people to block them (if they don’t want to see them). However, in practice the chance of all adult websites migrating to .xxx is minimal. That means .xxx is more about creating a safe environment where people can find adult websites without fear that those sites will contain malware. Indeed, ICM, the company responsible for managing and controlling .xxx domain names, has teamed up with experts McAfee to check .xxx sites for security risks. ICM also isn’t shy about the obvious business opportunities, talking of offering ‘micropayment opportunities’ for adult sites (presumably taking a slice for itself). It also has plans to create a search portal for .xxx sites. More details over on the ICM website. But ICM seems keen to do business responsibly, and is giving $10 a year for every registered domain to the International Foundation for Online Responsibility (IFFOR). This new, independent organisation will set some of the policies for the use of .xxx domains, focusing on privacy, security, free speech and child protection. Anyone who registers a triple-X domain name will have to follow these policies. Of course, how effective they are will all depend on how well they’re policed. Brand protection So, what do .xxx domains mean for the rest of us? If you don’t have a direct interest in the adult entertainment industry, you’ll still need to be on your toes when .xxx domain names become available. As with any other domain name extension, you might want to consider registering .xxx variations of your own domain name, to stop anyone else using them. If you do have multiple domain names across different extensions, you can use domain parking to potentially earn an income from any that aren’t attached to a live website. If you’re a trademark holder, you’ll be able to apply to block your trademarks being registered as .xxx domain names. If not, you’ll be able to pre-order .xxx domain names from our website, in due course. Does sex sell? There’s been a lot of controversy over .xxx domain names. The vote on whether to introduce them was tight, and – as you can imagine – there have been some strong discussions along the way. It’s certainly true that .xxx isn’t just another domain name extension. The adult entertainment industry is always going to be a controversial one, and online there’s no doubt it has some murkier aspects. ICM would claim that they’re doing their bit to help clean up this industry. Others would argue that it simply legitimises it. And there’s another view: that introducing .xxx makes it easier to block and censor people’s self-expression. It’s not easy, is it? What do you think?
The birth of a new domain name
You might have noticed that we’ve launched a few new domain name extensions on 123-reg over the last year or so. Most recently, it’s been the turn of .so domains – you’ll be able to register domain names ending in .so from 1 April 2011. (No, we didn’t have any choice over the date. And no, it’s not a joke.) How new domains are created New domain names aren’t just created and released overnight. The exact process depends on what sort of domain name extension it is: Country code domains, like .uk (for the United Kingdom), .cn (for China) and .co (for Colombia) are administered by the relevant country’s government. In practice, an appointed organisation usually runs the domain. In the UK, Nominet does this. Every country has its own country code. It’s up to them how they use it. Other domain extensions – like .com, .mobi and .info – are created by ICANN, the organisation with overall control of the domain name system. Getting a new extension created is very complicated, though plans are afoot to liberalise the market (mind you, you’ll still need hundreds of thousands of pounds and creating a new extension could take a year or more). Anyway, let’s just suppose that a new domain name’s about to hit the market. What happens next? The stages of domain name registration Once a new domain name extension has received the seal of approval from ICANN, there are a series of stages to the registration process: Sunrise. During the sunrise period, it’s usually only trademark holders who can register domain names. Every trademark holder gets checked individually, to make sure their application is legitimate.The idea is that trademark holders can protect their brand early – although there’s usually a hefty premium to register at this stage.Sunrise is for people who can prove they have the ‘right’ to a particular domain name. Landrush. At landrush stage, anyone can apply to register any domain name. However, they’re not sold on a first-come-first-served basis. Instead, domains are allocated at the end of the landrush period.If more than one application is received for a domain name, it’s auctioned off.Landrush is for people willing to pay more to secure a domain name. Both the sunrise and landrush stages are usually run by the domain name registrar – the organisation that manages that domain name extension. Each stage can last a month or two. It’s not until the third stage that domain name companies like 123-reg usually start selling the domains: General availability. Following on from sunrise and landrush, general availability is when anyone can take their pick of the remaining domain names.When we talk about pre-ordering domain names on 123-reg, it’s in preparation for general availability – if you place a preorder with us, we automatically try and register your domain name(s) the second general availability starts.General availability is the ‘free for all’, when domains become available at more reasonable prices. Although not every new domain name follows this process exactly, most are released in a similar manner. As for our new .so domain names? You can pre-order up until 31 March. If you don’t get your pre-order in time, come back to our site on or after 1 April, when you’ll be able to register .so domain names there and then.