From arstechnica: After years of controversy, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has officially reversed its approval of a proposal that would have established a .xxx top-level domain for use by the pornography industry. Initially proposed by ICM Registry in 2000 and resubmitted in 2004, the .xxx domain faced strong opposition from politicians and conservative groups.

After the second .xxx proposal was approved in 2005, the Family Research Council (FRC) mobilized its forces in an all-out crusade. Claiming that the creation of a .xxx TLD would allow pornographers to “expand their evil empires on the Internet,” the FRC urged its supporters to express opposition to the proposal. The Department of Commerce alone received nearly 6,000 letters expressing concern on the subject. The Department of Commerce eventually requested that ICANN spend more time considering the implications of the proposal before reaching a conclusion. A few senators apparently didn’t get the memo, and proposed the Cyber Safety for Kids act of 2006, which would have legislatively required pornographic web sites to move to the new domain. The Family Research Council wasn’t the only organization that opposed the proposal. The Internet pornography industry expressed opposition as well, because they felt that the creation of a .xxx domain would lead to censorship and promote legislation harmful to the industry.

Now it looks like the .xxx domain is doomed as a result of yesterday’s 9-5 vote. Despite the typical wailing and gnashing of teeth that transpired amongst the ranks of the conservative horde, regulatory concerns ended up being a bigger factor than The ChildrenTM in the final analysis. Members of ICANN’s board of directors were concerned that the creation of a .xxx TLD would make ICANN responsible for enforcing laws and regulations relating to Internet pornography.

Top-level domains add much needed specificity to addresses and broaden availability of domain names. Despite the fact that the creation of a new TLD is typically beneficial, it seems like the .xxx domain was a solution in search of a problem. The adult entertainment industry doesn’t want it, concerned parents don’t like it, and ICANN doesn’t want the hassle or responsibilities. It looks as though the only organizations that expressed support for .xxx where the domain registrars that stood to profit from domain sales.

Online pornography is a multi-billion dollar industry that is rapidly growing, particularly in the mobile technology sector. According to statistics from comScore Media Matrix, 2 in 5 Internet users browse pornography every month. It is important to note that only a fraction of Internet pornographers operate in the United States, so legislation restricting particular kinds of content to specific domains would accomplish very little.

Although no details on the subject are provided in ICANN’s press release, the associated press is also reporting that the .tel domain received official approval at yesterday’s meeting. This TLD seems to be pointless, as it would exist solely as a place for individuals and corporations to have their contact information readily available. Like the .xxx TLD, .tel seems to be another solution in search of a problem. At least it should make the domain name registrars happy as companies feel compelled to snap up “companyname.tel” domains.