Manwin Plans to File AntiTrust Suit Against .XXX

[Bec]

From XBiz news

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Adult entertainment company Manwin plans on filing an antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. against .XXX operator ICM Registry and ICANN relative to the new .XXX space.

While the suit hasn't yet been filed in federal courts, Greg Dumas told XBIZ that he "interprets this lawsuit as Manwin's attempt to flex their muscles and may be a part of a much bigger strategy."

"As we have proved time and again, ICM Registry has taken extensive measures to ensure it is being launched in the most lawful and responsible possible way," he said. "ICM Registry will vigorously defend their position against any meritless claims such as this one."

Dumas said that Manwin possibly filed the lawsuit "because they are worried that ICM Registry is creating opportunities for others in the adult industry to have a fair chance to build great brands and businesses in the new .XXX space.

"It's also important to know that we had been previously engaged in negotiations with Manwin on domain names and other things that they had requested. I'd think a phone call would have worked just as well because litigation is never good for anyone."

Manwin plans on disseminating a release on the pending suit shortly.

[BabyMaker]

fantastic news, one of the few organizations with enough cash and legal resources to really fuck with the ICM and .XXX in a serious way, congrats to manwin and now DP as well for stepping up

[HunkyLuke]

Yeah I agree, I really dislike the way that they have opened up "exclusive" registration rights to the select few - and sites are already running on the .xxx space before general registration is even opened.

Good on ManWin for stepping up to the plate!

[tofu]

There is a subtle irony about Manwin taking on .XXX.

I'm just saying... :innocent:

Either way, this will be interesting story to follow!

[conran]

Great! It's about time someone with some power stood up for the whole industry and kicked some ICM ass!

You know, it amazes me that any adult business has engaged with them when you see the sheer avalanche of negative posting the whole .XXX thing has gained on industry sites. I guess it just shows that some adult businesses either don't pay attention to the industry at all, or they just don't care that they'll loose the support of thousands of webmasters the moment they're found to be supporting the .XXX con.

A week ago I saw a boycott list on a blog detailing all those adult sites/companies currently dabbling in .XXX with plenty of people stating that they would stop promoting them and a lot of intelligent consumers saying they'll boycott them too the moment their .XXX goes live. I don't think it's been extended it to those simply securing their domain though (and in my opinion it probably should, because they're still supporting it through funding).
If I can find the link I'll post it. It was pretty heartwarming to see such a decent response to it.

Any adult company considering using a .XXX now needs to consider the damage that association will do to their brand. And rightly so.
Serves them right for making deals with the devil and supporting something that could entirely destroy the industry.

[HunkyLuke]

I would like to see that list, Conran.

We had a Moniker rep jrzeygirl here about a month ago, I was hoping to get more answers about .xxx from her, but she disappeared very quickly! Honestly, at this point I am confused.

I don't have any morality issues against .xxx. For me, this is about evaluating the business validity. So far, I know that .xxx domains are extremely expensive (although we still don't know how much they will be when released), and that a select few have already been able to register .xxx domain names before anyone else (not fair IMHO). I have also read a few articles which quote various governments around the world that are planning an outright ban on .xxx, and have even read that if they find a .xxx domain name they will immediately look at banning the .com version of the same domain name. To me, all of this adds up to .xxx being bad for business.

Oh, anyone know if Manwin put out that press release yet?

[conran]

I guess I have a moral problem with it in that it seems to be a dictatorial regime. There's been quite a lot of discussion over the control they will have over any registered domain, and apparently having one means you're subject to restrictions and controls on how you can use it. And, as you say, preferential treatment has been given to some, presumably because they've actively supported it or they have a friend involved in the process. To me that's simple corruption. Money talks, and the bigger boys have louder voices and access to an influential ear.

And as you mention, from a business perspective it makes little sense either with several countries already stating they'll block all .XXX, and that's only the start.
Some might think that's not a big deal because they don't earn much from those selected countries anyway, but they're not considering that this will also allow service providers to create a split-level system, restricting all .XXX to a premium service that has to be requested by the consumer. We're already seeing our governments actively going after internet restrictions.

How many $'s will those with a .XXX loose out on when all the service providers get support from their governments to restrict .XXX to a premium service - like cable TV?

That's the main reason I think those buying into the .XXX thing are complete idiots. They are supporting the potential decimation of their own industry, and paying for it too.