Changes

| founders        = [[Jason Hendeles]]

| founders        = [[Jason Hendeles]]

| ownership      =  

| ownership      =  

| headquarters    = Suite 2500 130, <br> Adelaide Street West, <br> Toronto, Ontario M5H 2M2

| headquarters    = PO BOX 30129<br>Palm Beach Gardens <br>Florida

| country        = Canada

| country        = USA

| businesses      =  

| businesses      =  

| products        =  

| products        =  

| keypeople      =

| keypeople      =

[[Stuart Lawley]], Chairman and CEO <br>

[[Stuart Lawley]], Chairman and CEO <br>

[[Len Bayles]], Chief Technical Officer  

[[Len Bayles]], Chief Technical Officer  

}}

}}

==Registration Statistics==

==Registration Statistics==

In January, 2012, [[Afilias]], the technical back-end provider for .xxx, announced that the 3-month old [[.xxx]] extension had over 200,000 registrations. However, more than half of these were not signed into the [[Root Zone|root zone]], meaning that many of the registrations were [[Defensive Registration|defensive acquisitions]] by trademark owners, reserved names, or  pre-blocked domains by [[ICM Registry]] that will never be resolving domains.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2012/01/18/afilias-xxx-breaks-200k-domains-under-management-a-look-inside-the-numbers/ Afilias XXX 200k Domains Under Management a Look Inside the Numbers, TheDomains.com]</ref>

In January, 2012, [[Afilias]], the technical back-end provider for .xxx, announced that the 3-month old [[.xxx]] extension had over 200,000 registrations. However, more than half of these were not signed into the [[Root Zone|root zone]], meaning that many of the registrations were [[Defensive Registration|defensive acquisitions]] by trademark owners, reserved names, or  pre-blocked domains by [[ICM Registry]] that will never be resolving domains.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2012/01/18/afilias-xxx-breaks-200k-domains-under-management-a-look-inside-the-numbers/ Afilias XXX 200k Domains Under Management a Look Inside the Numbers, TheDomains.com]</ref> As of June 2, 2013, .xxx had 122,000 active registrations, after a peak at 142,000 in December 2012. During May 2013, [[ICM Registry]] cut the prices for .xxx names down to .com-level prices, resulting in a large number of registrations during that month.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/13245-icm-price-cut-sees-10-times-more-xxx-sales ICM Price Cut sees 10 times more xxx sales, Domain Incite] Retrieved 19 Sept 2013</ref>

==Marketing==

==Marketing==

At least one critic has labelled ICM Registry's business model, from the domain itself to its advertising, as an "intimidation TLD."<ref>[http://domainshane.com/xxx-sucks-what-is-the-next-indimidation-tld/ XXX .sucks What is the Next Intimidation TLD, DomainShane.com]</ref>

At least one critic has labelled ICM Registry's business model, from the domain itself to its advertising, as an "intimidation TLD."<ref>[http://domainshane.com/xxx-sucks-what-is-the-next-indimidation-tld/ XXX .sucks What is the Next Intimidation TLD, DomainShane.com]</ref>

In November, 2011, [[Manwin]] Licensing International filed a lawsuit in response to ICM Registry advertisements that used pressure tactics, such as running ads with wording like: ".XXX LANDRUSH IS NOW OPEN. PROTECT YOUR BRAND" or "SECURE YOUR DOMAIN. PROTECT YOUR REPUTATION."<ref>[http://www.techdirt.com/blog/?company=icm Blog, TechDirt.com]</ref>

In November 2011, [[Manwin]] Licensing International filed a lawsuit in response to ICM Registry advertisements that used pressure tactics, such as running ads with wording like: ".XXX LANDRUSH IS NOW OPEN. PROTECT YOUR BRAND" or "SECURE YOUR DOMAIN. PROTECT YOUR REPUTATION."<ref>[http://www.techdirt.com/blog/?company=icm Blog, TechDirt.com]</ref>

 

In May 2013, a settlement was reached between Manwin Licensing and ICM Registry, in which ICM registry agreed to significant financial concessions in order to settle the case. ICM agreed to donate $2 for every .xxx domain created into "a fund designated by Manwin to support the adult entertainment industry".<ref>[http://domainincite.com/12846-youporn-spanks-icm-as-xxx-prices-slashed YouPorn spanks ICM as xxx prices slashed] Domainincite, published May 1 2013; retrieved December 3rd 2014.</ref> ICM indicated it will offer price reductions in the future, although it is not clear whether or to what degree this is due to the settlement.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/12846-youporn-spanks-icm-as-xxx-prices-slashed YouPorn spanks ICM as xxx prices slashed] Domainincite, published May 1 2013; retrieved December 3rd 2014.</ref>

===Search.xxx===

===Search.xxx===

In the first 24 hours of general availability, ICM sold 55,367 domains. Counting the landrush and sunrise periods, the first day of general availability brought the total of domains sold to about 160,000.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2011/12/07/icm-xxx-1st-24-hours-of-ga-56000-registrations-a-total-of-160k-domain-names-registered/ ICM xxx 1st 34 hours of GA 56000 registrations, TheDomains.com]</ref> It was estimated that on its first day, ICM brought in $3.3 million in revenue, with over half a million of that to be given to [[IFFOR|International Fund For Online Responsibility]] (IFFOR).<ref>[http://domainnamewire.com/2011/12/07/55367-xxx-domain-names-registered-in-first-24-hours/ 55367 xxx domain names registered in first 24 hours, DomainNameWire.com]</ref> On December 16, it was brought to light that only approximately 95,000 domain names existed in the .xxx root zone. Roughly 84,000 of the domains were defensive registrations, and 14,400 were registered by the adult entertainment community. Of this, 3,200 were parked at [[Domain Control]], and approximately 4,000 were parked at  various other parking services. Thus, half of the community registrations were parked or for sale.<ref>[http://jl.ly/ICANN/xxxzone.html John R. Levine, Who's registering .XXX domains]</ref>

In the first 24 hours of general availability, ICM sold 55,367 domains. Counting the landrush and sunrise periods, the first day of general availability brought the total of domains sold to about 160,000.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2011/12/07/icm-xxx-1st-24-hours-of-ga-56000-registrations-a-total-of-160k-domain-names-registered/ ICM xxx 1st 34 hours of GA 56000 registrations, TheDomains.com]</ref> It was estimated that on its first day, ICM brought in $3.3 million in revenue, with over half a million of that to be given to [[IFFOR|International Fund For Online Responsibility]] (IFFOR).<ref>[http://domainnamewire.com/2011/12/07/55367-xxx-domain-names-registered-in-first-24-hours/ 55367 xxx domain names registered in first 24 hours, DomainNameWire.com]</ref> On December 16, it was brought to light that only approximately 95,000 domain names existed in the .xxx root zone. Roughly 84,000 of the domains were defensive registrations, and 14,400 were registered by the adult entertainment community. Of this, 3,200 were parked at [[Domain Control]], and approximately 4,000 were parked at  various other parking services. Thus, half of the community registrations were parked or for sale.<ref>[http://jl.ly/ICANN/xxxzone.html John R. Levine, Who's registering .XXX domains]</ref>

==Notable Deals==

==Notable Deals==

It was also announced in December, 2011 that $700,000 worth of domains had been sold to Clips4Sale, which operates a number of clip-oriented porn sites. The sale was made up of a total of 30 domains, with the single most expensive being a $300,000 domain name; two others were sold for over $80,000.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/icm-sells-700000-of-xxx-domains-to-clips4sale/ ICM selles 700000 of XXX Domains to Clips4Sale, DomainIncite.com]</ref>

It was also announced in December, 2011 that $700,000 worth of domains had been sold to Clips4Sale, which operates a number of clip-oriented porn sites. The sale was made up of a total of 30 domains, with the single most expensive being a $300,000 domain name; two others were sold for over $80,000.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/icm-sells-700000-of-xxx-domains-to-clips4sale/ ICM selles 700000 of XXX Domains to Clips4Sale, DomainIncite.com]</ref>

==Cybersquatting==

==Cybersquatting==

In 2010, ICM CEO, [[Stuart Lawley]], registered on the most popular adult industry forum, xbiz.net, and sustained a conversation with concerned community members for some time. While many points were discussed civilly, some members attacked Mr. Lawley personally, while others merely side-tracked the conversation. A screen-grab of the entire forum thread can be seen [http://www.freespeechcoalition.com/images/pdf/XBIZ.net%20Thread.pdf here]. [[Diane Duke]] and Stuart Lawley partook in a live debate on the merits and drawbacks of .xxx at the inaugural XBiz EU Summit, held in London in September, 2010. A video of the interaction can be seen [http://www.xbiz.com/blogs/139525 here].

In 2010, ICM CEO, [[Stuart Lawley]], registered on the most popular adult industry forum, xbiz.net, and sustained a conversation with concerned community members for some time. While many points were discussed civilly, some members attacked Mr. Lawley personally, while others merely side-tracked the conversation. A screen-grab of the entire forum thread can be seen [http://www.freespeechcoalition.com/images/pdf/XBIZ.net%20Thread.pdf here]. [[Diane Duke]] and Stuart Lawley partook in a live debate on the merits and drawbacks of .xxx at the inaugural XBiz EU Summit, held in London in September, 2010. A video of the interaction can be seen [http://www.xbiz.com/blogs/139525 here].

===Manwin Lawsuit===

===Manwin Lawsuit===

[[Manwin]], one of the most prominent adult content producers on the Internet, filed an Anti-Trust suit against both ICM and ICANN over the creation and implementation of the .xxx TLD. This legal action took place in November, 2011, well after the TLD's approval and just before its general availability.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2011/11/16/bbreaking-owner-of-youporn-com-plans-to-file-suit-against-icm-icann-over-xxx/ Owner of YouPorn.com Plans to File Suit Against ICM ICANN over XXX, TheDomains.com]</ref> It also filed an [[IRP|Independent Review Panel]] (IRP) Request with ICANN, making it only the second company ever to do so (the first being ICM Registry itself). Manwin felt that ICANN's decision to allow .xxx into the root did not “adequately address issues including competition, consumer protection, malicious abuse and rights protection prior to approving the .xxx TLD."<ref>[http://domainincite.com/youporn-challenges-new-gtlds-with-review-demand/ YouPorn Challenges New gTLDs with Review Demand, DomainIncite.com]</ref>

[[Manwin]], one of the most prominent adult content producers on the Internet, filed an Anti-Trust suit against both ICM and ICANN over the creation and implementation of the .xxx TLD. This legal action took place in November, 2011, well after the TLD's approval and just before its general availability.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2011/11/16/bbreaking-owner-of-youporn-com-plans-to-file-suit-against-icm-icann-over-xxx/ Owner of YouPorn.com Plans to File Suit Against ICM ICANN over XXX, TheDomains.com]</ref> It also filed an [[IRP|Independent Review Panel]] (IRP) Request with ICANN, making it only the second company ever to do so (the first being ICM Registry itself). Manwin felt that ICANN's decision to allow .xxx into the root did not “adequately address issues including competition, consumer protection, malicious abuse and rights protection prior to approving the .xxx TLD."<ref>[http://domainincite.com/youporn-challenges-new-gtlds-with-review-demand/ YouPorn Challenges New gTLDs with Review Demand, DomainIncite.com]</ref>

In January 2012, ICANN and ICM both filed motions to dismiss the case. ICANN argued that, as it was an organization not engaged in "trade or commerce," the US anti-trust laws did not apply to it; additionally, both ICM and ICANN argued that Manwin's filing was essentially complaining about the possible increase in competition for them. ICM cited that Manwin had earlier attempt to approach them with a supposed mutually-beneficial agreement, in which Manwin would acquire various premium .xxx domains for free, in exchange sharing the profits of these domains with ICM. When ICM turned down the agreement, Manwin Managing Partner Fabian Thylmann said that he would do whatever he could to stop .xxx.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/icann-antitrust-law-does-not-apply-to-us/ ICANN: antitrust law does not apply to us, domainincite.com]</ref> ICANN's and ICM's motions to dismiss can be found [http://domainincite.com/docs/icann-manwin-motion-to-dismiss.pdf here] and [http://domainincite.com/docs/manwin-icm-motion-to-dismiss-2.pdf here] respectively. On February 17, the company amended its anti-trust lawsuit against ICANN and ICM Registy. According to Kevin E. Gaut, legal counsel of Manwin, two related state law claims were dropped to avoid potential risks of trial delays.<ref>

In January 2012, ICANN and ICM both filed motions to dismiss the case. ICANN argued that, as it was an organization not engaged in "trade or commerce," the US anti-trust laws did not apply to it; additionally, both ICM and ICANN argued that Manwin's filing was essentially complaining about the possible increase in competition for them. ICM stated that Manwin had previously attempted to approach them with a supposed mutually-beneficial agreement, in which Manwin would acquire various premium .xxx domains for free, and in exchange sharing the profits of these domains with ICM. When ICM turned down the agreement, Manwin Managing Partner Fabian Thylmann said that he would do whatever he could to stop .xxx.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/icann-antitrust-law-does-not-apply-to-us/ ICANN: antitrust law does not apply to us, domainincite.com]</ref> ICANN's and ICM's motions to dismiss can be found [http://domainincite.com/docs/icann-manwin-motion-to-dismiss.pdf here] and [http://domainincite.com/docs/manwin-icm-motion-to-dismiss-2.pdf here] respectively.

[http://www.thedomains.com/2012/02/21/manwin-amends-complaint-against-icm-icann-drops-2-state-claims-talks-of-settlement/ Manwin Amends Complaint Against ICM & ICANN & Drops 2 State Claims & Talks Of Settlement]</ref> The plaintiff and defendants also announced that they were in talks and hoping to resolve some to all of the outstanding complaints.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/icm-and-youporn-in-antitrust-settlement-talks/ ICM and YouPorn in AntiTrust Settlement Talks, DomainIncite.com]</ref>

 

In mid-February, Manwin, ICANN and ICM Registry announced that they were in talks and hoping to resolve some or all of the outstanding complaints. The motions to dismiss the case filed by ICANN and ICM were temporarily put on hold.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/icm-and-youporn-in-antitrust-settlement-talks/ ICM and YouPorn in AntiTrust Settlement Talks, DomainIncite.com]</ref> On February 17, the company amended its anti-trust lawsuit against ICANN and ICM Registy. According to Manwin's counsel Kevin E. Gaut, two related state law claims were dropped to avoid potential risks of trial delays.<ref>[http://www.thedomains.com/2012/02/21/manwin-amends-complaint-against-icm-icann-drops-2-state-claims-talks-of-settlement/ Manwin Amends Complaint Against ICM & ICANN & Drops 2 State Claims & Talks Of Settlement]</ref>

 

In August, 2012, a mixed ruling by the Central District of California District Court accepted only 2 out of ICANN and ICM's 7 motions to dismiss. The court ruled that ICANN would be subject to anti-trust law, as ICM pays fees to them in order to be permitted to run the .xxx domain space, and that the trial would proceed with focus on the "defensive registrations" market.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/10149-court-rules-youporn-can-sue-icann-for-alleged-xxx-antitrust-violations Court rules YouPorn can sue ICANN for alleged .xxx antitrust violations, domainincite.com]</ref> Later that month, ICM Registry hired a new team of lawyers to handle the antitrust lawsuit. Gordon & Rees senior partner Richard Sybert took over as lead counsel for the case, replacing [[Becky Burr]] from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, as she left her position at the firm. The team also included veteran domain industry lawyer [[Bret Fausett]], who represented the Coalition For ICANN Transparency in its antitrust case against ICANN and Verisign. The results of this suit set a precedent for Manwin's case against ICANN and ICM.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/10279-icm-hires-fausett-to-help-with-youporn-antitrust-case ICM hires Fausett to help with YouPorn antitrust case, domainincite.com]</ref>

In October, 2012, ICM filed a counter-suit against Manwin. The company alleged that Manwin has cost them at least $120 million in damages by using its adult industry market power to convince other companies not to do business with the .xxx TLD.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/10653-icm-files-120m-lawsuit-over-manwins-xxx-boycott ICM files $120m lawsuit over Manwin’s .xxx “boycott”, domainincite.com]</ref> ICM's counter-suit was later thrown out of court; the judge stated, "“Harm to ICM only is not sufficient to constitute antitrust injury. It must allege harm to the competitive process.” ICM can redraft its claims to be resubmitted to the court.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/12011-icms-claims-against-manwin-thrown-out-of-court ICMs Claims Against Manwin Thrown Out of Court, DomainIncite.com] Retreived 28 Feb 2013</ref>

It was of great concern to ICANN, its [[GAC]], and the Internet community, that .xxx would be a wholly blockable domain extension in the [[Root Zone|root zone]]. This was unprecedented. While many restrictive governments block and censor certain sites, it was a new concept to block an entire extension. This fact failed to stop the passage of .xxx, but many countries have stuck to their word and have blocked the name space, including:

* India, the first to block .xxx<ref>[http://100gf.wordpress.com/2011/03/29/india-becomes-first-country-to-block-entire-xxx-domain/ India becomes First Country to Block Entire XXX Domain, 100gf.Wordpress.com]</ref>

* Kenya<ref>[http://www.ynot.com/content/116795-kenya-joins-list-countries-block-dot-xxx.html Kenya Joins List Countries Block dot XXX]</ref>

* China<ref>[http://www.ynot.com/content/116795-kenya-joins-list-countries-block-dot-xxx.html Kenya Joins List Countries Block dot XXX]</ref>

* Egypt<ref>[http://venturebeat.com/2012/03/28/egypt-porn-ban/ Egypt Porn Ban, VentureBeat.com]</ref>

==Applications for .adult, .porn, and .sex TLDs==

==Applications for .adult, .porn, and .sex TLDs==

On April 12, 2012, ICM Registry confirmed its application for three additional adult TLDs with ICANN's [[New gTLD Program|New gTLD expansion program]]. The new gTLD string proposals intended for the use of the adult entertainment community include [[.adult]], [[.porn]] and [[.sex]]. According to Lawley, all registered domain names under the .xxx gTLD will be grandfathered under these domain names if approved by the internet governing body. Matching names will be automatically reserved under the proposed .adult, .porn and .sex TLDs without any cost to the domain names owner. In case a registrant decides to activate and use the any of the reserved counterpart domain names, a minimal fee will be charged. Lawley said that his company invested less than $2 million to support its applications for the TLDs submitted by the newly created subsidiary companies; ICM Registry SX LLC, ICM Registry PN LLC, and ICM Registry AD LLC.<ref>[http://www.icmregistry.com/press/xxx-operator-applies-to-icann-for-more-adult-top-level-domains/ .XXX Operator Applies to ICANN for More Adult Top-Level Domains]</ref><ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/video/91151787/ Bloomberg Interview with Stuart Lawley]</ref>

On April 12, 2012, ICM Registry confirmed its application for three additional adult TLDs with ICANN's [[New gTLD Program|New gTLD expansion program]]. The new gTLD string proposals intended for the use of the adult entertainment community include [[.adult]], [[.porn]] and [[.sex]]. According to Lawley, all registered domain names under the .xxx gTLD will be grandfathered under these domain names if approved by the internet governing body. Matching names will be automatically reserved under the proposed .adult, .porn and .sex TLDs without any cost to the domain names owner. In case a registrant decides to activate and use any of the reserved counterpart domain names, a minimal fee will be charged. Lawley said that his company invested less than $2 million to support its applications for the TLDs submitted by the newly created subsidiary companies; ICM Registry SX LLC, ICM Registry PN LLC, and ICM Registry AD LLC.<ref>[http://www.icmregistry.com/press/xxx-operator-applies-to-icann-for-more-adult-top-level-domains/ .XXX Operator Applies to ICANN for More Adult Top-Level Domains]</ref><ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/video/91151787/ Bloomberg Interview with Stuart Lawley]</ref>

Christian group [[Morality In Media]], which also fought hard against .xxx, launched a letter-writing campaign in July 2012 against ICM's three new TLD applications. The group claims that its prediction about .xxx, that it would create more porn and not less, has been vindicated, as porn sites under the [[.com]] TLD have not moved to .xxx, and additional new sites have been created under the .xxx extension.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/9728-christian-group-opposes-sex-porn-adult Christian group opposes .sex, .porn, .adult, domainincite.com]</ref> With its campaign, MIM asked the U. S. Government and Congress and [[ICANN]] to take action against the spread of porn under the Internet by not allowing the three new TLDs into the [[root zone]].<ref>[http://www.waronillegalpornography.com/action-oppose-porn-sex-and-adult-domains/ ACTION: Oppose .porn, .sex and .adult domains!, waronillegalpornography.com]</ref>

The Christian group, [[Morality In Media]], which also fought hard against .xxx, launched a letter-writing campaign in July, 2012 against ICM's three new TLD applications. The group claims that its prediction about .xxx, that it would create more porn and not less, has been vindicated, as porn sites under the [[.com]] TLD have not moved to .xxx, and additional new sites have been created under the .xxx extension.<ref>[http://domainincite.com/9728-christian-group-opposes-sex-porn-adult Christian group opposes .sex, .porn, .adult, domainincite.com]</ref> With its campaign, MIM asked the U. S. Congress and [[ICANN]] to take action against the spread of porn on the Internet by not allowing the three new TLDs into the [[Root Zone|root zone]].<ref>[http://www.waronillegalpornography.com/action-oppose-porn-sex-and-adult-domains/ ACTION: Oppose .porn, .sex and .adult domains!, waronillegalpornography.com]</ref>

== References ==

== References ==

{{reflist}}

{{reflist}}</div>

== External links ==

== External links ==

* [http://www.icmregistry.com Official website of ICM Registry]

* [http://www.icmregistry.com Official website of ICM Registry]

[[Category: Registries]]

[[Category: Registries]]