Opposing the approval of .xxx suffix for pornography websites by a global agency governing the web, India has decided to block all access to the newly-formed red-light district.India has declared its stance against the recently approved .xxx sponsored top-level domain (sTLD).
In order to register a new .xxx domain, porn sites have to pass an application process that’s designed to ensure that their site does not engage in fraud, child pornography, nor offer up malware to users. A key reason the porn industry opposes the new TLD is that it adds additional costs: sites have to register and pay for additional .xxx domain names to avoid having their brands hijacked.
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), the organization that oversees the internet, gave final approval a week back to a proposal to create a new top-level domain name on the web with the suffix .xxx, which will host only sites that feature adult content. In order to register with the new domain, porn sites have to pass an application process that’s designed to ensure that their site does not engage in fraud, child pornography and malicious code that could infect users’ computers with viruses
The Economic Times quoted a senior official at the Ministry of IT as saying
"India along with many other countries from the Middle East and Indonesia opposed the grant of the domain in the first place, and we would proceed to block the whole domain, as it goes against the IT Act and Indian laws." "Though some people have said that segregation is better, and some countries allow it. But for other nations transmission and direct distribution of such content goes against their moral and culture," he added.
A Business Insider article said the key reason the porn industry says it opposes the domain is that it would raise costs for porn providers, who will now have to register additional .xxx domain names at $60 a pop to avoid having their brands hijacked on the new domain.
India’s decision confirms the main objection raised by critics of the TLD: that it would make censorship of pornographic materials far easier to pull off. Others want exactly this; the new suffix enables easier policing by parents and employers.
