XXX Domains – the battle continues.
The ICM Registry – managers of the .XXX gTLD – has added to its countersuit against porn barons, Manwin, alleging “unfair competition” from one of Manwin’s adult content providers, Reality Kings.
According to XBIZ:
The $40 million countersuit against Manwin, amended last week, re-alleges the adult entertainment conglomerate filed its antitrust lawsuit against ICM Registry in order to maintain its “current monopoly” over search and access to online adult entertainment.
But in an amended countersuit filed last week, ICM Registry makes new allegations that Manwin has colluded with third parties to boycott content from Shemale.xxx and Ladyboy.xxx, both owned by Grooby Productions, on Manwin’s tube sites based upon on their .XXX affiliation.
Other new allegations mentioned in the amended countersuit involve Reality Kings, which earlier this year was acquired by Manwin.
Meanwhile, the ICM Registry said that prior to their acquisition by Manwin in April, Reality Kings’ operators entered into the.XXX Founders Program, which assisted webmasters develop groups of web sites and lock down matching adult domain portfolios of existing domains in other TLDs, before the official reservation period for .XXX.
The XBIZ article continues:
But once Manwin found out about Reality Kings’ involvement with the Founders Program deal with ICM Registry, the deal died on the vine, the amended countersuit said. “Pursuant to Manwin’s boycott of .XXX, Reality Kings has not developed its domains and is in breach of the .XXX Founder Premium Domain Name Licensing Fee Contract,” ICM Registry said.
ICM Registry claims in the amended countersuit that Reality Kings’ breach of contract is a direct result of Manwin’s interference.
Luxembourg-based Manwin filed the first shot in the legal battle over .XXX last November, when it made claims alleging that ICM Registry received original and renewal top-level domain registry contracts without competition, is charging above-market .XXX prices, imposes other anticompetitive .XXX sales restrictions and has, because of its ICANN contract, precluded other adult-oriented top-level domains from operating. Manwin also named ICANN in the suit.
Last month ICM Registry filed its countersuit, making scores of allegations, including that Manwin, as well as its Digital Playground division and co-plaintiff, engaged in predatory acts to prevent and coerce others in the adult entertainment industry from utilizing the .XXX TLD platform.
You can read more about this legal wrangling here.
