Icann delays .xxx porn vote

A final decision on the fate of the highly controversial dot-xxx domain, which was intended to be reserved for online pornography, will not happen until September.

The board of directors of the not-for-profit group that oversees domain names said on Tuesday that it would delay a vote until its next meeting on 15 September. That decision follows last-minute opposition to the creation of dot-xxx from the Bush administration and other national governments. The vote was originally supposed to take place on Tuesday.

The move by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (Icann) was expected after ICM Registry, the Florida company that plans to operate dot-xxx, agreed on Monday to a month's delay, saying the additional time would permit it to assuage concerns about the creation of a virtual red-light district.

John Jeffrey, Icann's general counsel, said in an email that "dot-xxx was deferred in response to requests from the applicant ICM, as well as Icann Government Advisory Committee Chairman's and the US Department of Commerce's request to allow for additional time for comments by interested parties".

In an unprecedented move in Icann's seven-year history, the Bush administration intervened in the domain name creation process by sending a letter saying: "The Department of Commerce has received nearly 6,000 letters and emails from individuals expressing concern about the impact of pornography on families and children." Icann had endorsed the concept of a dot-xxx domain in June and approval of ICM Registry's contract to run the suffix was expected to take place in a routine vote this week.

After Icann's vote to approve dot-xxx, conservative groups in the United States called on their supporters to ask the Commerce Department to block the new suffix.

The Family Research Council, for instance, warned "pornographers will be given even more opportunities to flood our homes, libraries and society with pornography through the dot-xxx domain". In an unusual twist, the American Civil Liberties Union has also raised concerns about dot-xxx, predicting that the new domain would create a near-irresistible temptation for governments to make it mandatory for pornographic sites.

Mohamed Sharil Tarmizi, chairman of Icann's advisory committee of government officials and an official on Malaysia's communications commission, asked for a halt to dot-xxx in a letter last week. Tarmizi told CNET News.com: "I have not gotten a response from the Board as yet, nor do I expect one.

"I spoke to the board based on my observation of the recent meeting in Luxembourg that many governments are still grappling with the debates on this issue and although it is a long outstanding issue, in this regard, I felt that a little more time was warranted for views to be expressed."

Declan McCullagh writes for CNET News.com