A global internet oversight agency is reopening discussions about whether to create a “.xxx” domain name as an online red-light district where porn sites can set up shop away from the wandering eyes of children and teenagers, reports the Associated Press. Parents would be able to use the system to help block access to porn sites, though because its use would be voluntary, the “.xxx” suffix wouldn’t keep such content entirely away from minors. Religious and other anti-porn groups worry that “.xxx” would legitimize porn sites, and the proposal already has been rejected three times since 2000. But the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which oversees the allocation of internet addresses globally, might revive ICM Registry LLC’s bid yet again as ICANN meets this week in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi. ICM, which planned to charge $60 for a site to register a “.xxx” name, first proposed “.xxx” in 2000 as a way to help the online porn industry clean up its act. Those using the domain would have to abide by yet-to-be-written rules designed to bar such trickery as spamming and malicious scripts. Schools and parents also could set up internet software to block any site ending in “.xxx” automatically, reducing the chances that minors and other internet users would accidentally stumble on pornography online. Given its voluntary nature, however, “.xxx” might not have much effect on the ability to block porn sites…
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