from www.dailymail.co.uk – The internet’s very own red light district will officially open for business today – as more than 100,000 websites go live with the new .xxx domain.

Porn stars, adult movie studios and magazines saw their content switched to the sites – as a series of saucy adverts were posted on YouTube to encourage other business owners to become involved.

It has been hailed by some as the start of a safer era for adult content on the web – but critics say it will create an unlicensed ‘digital porn ghetto’ where pornography is endorsed and welcomed.

It has forced some firms not related to the adult industry to buy up their names in a bid to avoid embarrassing brand association.

And several adult entertainment companies are refusing to sign up as they fear it will make it easier for some governments to censor content by simply blocking access to all .xxx sites.

The suffix was approved as a top-level domain address last year by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).

The international not-for-profit organisation that co-ordinates web addresses said it would organise adult content more safely on the internet.
Critical: Owners of Playboy have refused to sign up to the new .xxx domain

The ICM Registry, which is handing out the new domain names, said in a statement: ‘The internet is home to a wealth of content, suitable for a wide range of ages and values.

‘The adult entertainment industry has, and always will, account for a large amount of this content and while it is enjoyed by some, it is not suitable, or of interest, to all internet users.
.XXX – WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

To that end, employers and others will also be able to block people on their networks

Would let users wanting to view adult content know they’re visiting a safe, legitimate and legal site – each site is scanned daily by McAfee

Those with the suffix become part of a ‘sponsored community’ and agree to operate legally and within agreed-upon business standards

Adult industry firms fear it is the first step towards making it compulsory for them all to have just .xxx domains – and say it could make it easier for governments to block access.

The group hopes the scheme will allow parents to keep their children away from sites by instigating a complete block on them.

It will also let users wanting to see adult content know they are visiting a safe, legitimate page – as each site will be scanned daily with McAfee protection tools.

But .xxx has provoked anger amongst religious groups who say the internet is now endorsing pornography.

Patrick Trueman, CEO of Morality in Media and former chief of the U.S. Department of Justice Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, has previoulsy said: ‘The establishment of a .xxx domain would increase, not decrease, the spread of pornography on the Internet.

Some firms have bought .xxx domain names that correspond with their existing web addresses to protect themselves from the potentially embarrassing situation of someone snapping up their brand to promote pornography.

Penn State University paid $200 each in September for four .xxx domains: Penn State, PSU, Nittany Lions and The Pennsylvania State University.
Safeguard: It is hoped the new .xxx domain will make it safer for children to use the internet

But .xxx does not mean pornography will disappear completely from .com sites, as adult sites are allowed to keep their existing URLs.

Some in the adult industry, such as Playboy, have criticised the domain by saying it is just the first step towards making it mandatory.

This, they claim, would then make it easy for governments to censor by blocking access to all .xxx sites. Manwin, the Luxembourg-based company that runs Playboy.com, has filed a legal suit in California to stop .xxx.

Last week it said it would not allow its content to be used on any sites with the suffix.

Fabian Thylmann [pictured], managing partner of Manwin, said: ‘We oppose the .xxx domain and all it stands for. It is my opinion that .xxx domain is an anticompetitive business practice that works a disservice to all companies that do business on the Internet.’

The domain names cost £38 per year from ICM Registry, and a one-off fee of £100 and £200. That is more than ten times the domain name fee charged by other domain registers.