ICM Registry

ICM Registry runs the registry for the adult-named top-level domains .xxx, .porn, .sex and .adult. It is a registry, not a registrar, so an operator buys a name from one of the ICANN accredited registrars the company lists, and the registry sets the namespace and the rules that govern it. The pages describe the company as a wholly owned subsidiary of Registry Services, LLC, and place it in Tempe, Arizona. The company calls itself "the leading destination for adult content online" and says it powers "the world's top portfolio of adult top-level domains". Those are the company's own claims, and the pages give no figures behind them.

What it sells an operator

The product is a domain name in one of these extensions. The home page pitches the extensions in brand terms, under the headline "Purpose-built domains for online adult content", and the about page describes "a secure, distinct and ownable space". The more concrete claim for a site operator sits in the FAQ, which says the extensions "offer a great opportunity to buy a keyword-based name that increases your SEO" and that this, with the registry's global promotion of each extension, "means more traffic to your sites". The same answer says the extensions give clarity both to people seeking adult entertainment and to those who want to avoid adult content. The pages do not say what the promotion consists of.

Operators can keep their existing adult names alongside the new ones. The FAQ answers the question directly: "No, you can continue to use your other existing domains." The registry also expects its extensions to become "the preferred domain names" for consumers and providers of adult entertainment.

Several product rules shape what is on offer. Some names are reserved. The FAQ says the registry reserved names "pursuant to obligations from ICANN" and others for best practices purposes, giving child protection names as an example, and that a reserved name "is not available for sale". Some names are premium: the registry reserves words and phrases that "will be offered at a premium price". And a registrant's domain must be tied to a Membership ID, a token, "in order for traffic to resolve to your nameservers". The FAQ adds that a .XXX name has to have its token reassociated when it moves to a new registrar.

The price is set by the registrar, not the registry. The FAQ says: "Please contact your registrar directly since they set their own retail prices." The pages publish no registry fee, no renewal price and no price for premium names. An operator comparing costs has to ask each registrar, and the pages give no basis for comparing one registrar with another.

The terms that decide the choice

The adult content policy is the first gap an operator should check. The policies page lists an Acceptable Use Policy, a Registration Policy, a Registry Operations Policy, a DNSSEC Practice Statement and the .xxx Rapid Evaluation Service, with its policy and rules. The page gives the titles of those documents and not their text. It therefore does not say what the acceptable use rules allow or forbid for adult content, whether a site needs approval before it uses a name, or what the Rapid Evaluation Service decides. The FAQ describes the registry's aim as "a responsible environment within which to operate their businesses", which is a statement of purpose and not a rule that a site can apply.

Transfers come with a fixed wait. "You may change the registrar sponsoring your domain name 60 days after initial registration." After that the change runs through the receiving registrar, and the FAQ points the operator there for the process. For a transfer the operator did not authorize, the FAQ says to contact the original registrar, and it notes that disputes between registrars over the Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy may be started by any ICANN-accredited registrar.

Trademark owners get a published route and a stated limit. The FAQ says a mark can be secured by registering it with the Trademark Clearinghouse and then registering the name through a registrar. It also says owning a trademark does not guarantee the matching name: the answer to that question is "Not necessarily." The registry says trademark owners "are offered protection via a myriad of rights protection mechanisms", without naming them on the page.

When another party holds a name that infringes a mark, the FAQ gives the registry's recommended route: "the best way to resolve this is to pursue the domain name owner via a UDRP and request it be transferred to you." It adds that more timely options may exist depending on the extension, and it points to per-extension dispute policies linked from the policies area; for .xxx the policies page lists a Rapid Evaluation Service with its own policy and rules.

Reporting runs through several routes. The contact page sends abuse reports to a Domain Abuse Center form, and the registry handles WHOIS and RDDS requests through their own pages. The contact page also names the IWF's online reporting page and INHOPE, a network of hotlines, as places to report illegal material. The page says the company works with "leading organizations" to keep its domains a place of consensual enjoyment.

The pages do not describe refunds, cancellations, payment methods, chargebacks or reserves. Registrations are bought through registrars, so those terms sit with each registrar, and the registry's pages do not address them. The pages set no record-keeping or age-verification duty for sites that use these names.

Getting started and support

Starting is a registrar purchase. The FAQ directs buyers to the list of ICANN accredited registrars on the company's site, and the pages name no other point of sale. After the purchase the operator sets nameservers at the registrar and confirms the Membership ID token is linked to the name at the same time. The pages say nothing about DNS hosting, zone files or API access.

Support runs through a contact form. The form asks for a name, an email address and a nature of inquiry, with options that include: Trusted Registrar partner, Press / Media Inquiry, Registration Inquiry, Sales Inquiry or Other Inquiry. The message box holds 250 characters. The page says the team "will review your request and will contact you as soon as possible." No phone number, support hours or ticket channel appears on the pages.

Company and track record

ICM Registry is "a wholly owned subsidiary of Registry Services, LLC", and its mailing address is in care of Registry Services, LLC at 100 S. Mill Avenue in Tempe, Arizona. The about page frames its mission as promoting responsible online behavior and supporting best practices within the adult entertainment community, and says the namespaces help clearly identify adult content online. Its partners are described only as "leading organizations"; the IWF and INHOPE appear as places to report illegal material rather than as memberships or accreditations.

Who it suits

The pages speak to the adult-domains category only. The registry suits a business that wants an adult-named extension ending in .xxx, .porn, .sex or .adult and is content to buy it through a registrar. It fits a trademark holder who wants a documented route through the Trademark Clearinghouse and the UDRP, and an operator who keeps existing adult names and adds an extension for a new brand.

It is a weaker fit for an operator who needs published registry pricing, the full acceptable use text, a refund or chargeback position or a phone line, since the pages carry none of these. The 60-day wait before a registrar change, the premium list and the reserved names all limit what an operator can move or claim quickly.

The strength is clarity on what follows the purchase. The FAQ answers the transfer, trademark, reserved-name and dispute questions directly, and the registry names its procedure for each one. An operator who wants a namespace with written dispute routes, and who is prepared to price the name through a registrar, will find the basic rules set out in one place.