Starting June 1, it will be possible for virtually anyone to buy domain names that end in .adult, .sucks and .porn but certain individuals and companies do not want their names attached to domains with a suffix that is porn-related. This is likely the very reason why Taylor Swift decided to buy the domains TaylorSwift.porn and TaylorSwift.adult.

The singer's team was able to snatch the domains before anyone else because the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which is behind the expansion of generic top-level domains (gTLDs), had allowed companies and public figures to grab some of the more controversial domains during the so-called "sunrise period" before everybody else could. Microsoft, for instance, also registered early for the domains Office.porn and Office.adult.

Safenames SVP of marketing Steve Miholovich said that most brands are compelled to buy controversial domains because this is their only option to protect their names. The problem is part of the domain squatting practice, which involves registering a domain with the intention of profiting from someone who has a name or brand to protect.

"People who have bad intentions are going to do what they're going to do and there's nothing to prevent that," Miholovich said.

Although Swift was able to secure the porn-related domain, she was unable to buy the domain with the .sucks suffix. Vox Populi Registry operates these domains, which will cost as much as $2,500 to buy out.

ICANN said that the program expanding gTLDs will be beneficial for Internet users because descriptive domains such as .deals, .healthcare and .amsterdam help ensure that people get to visit the website they intended to check out. The program also provides businesses with more unique addresses on the Internet.

It appears, though, that certain extensions such as .porn and .adult pose their own marketing issues as these may be abused when they get into the wrong hands. This is why some companies or individuals may want to buy porn-related domains or those that connote negativity to prevent these domains from being purchased and wrongfully used by somebody else.

Some corporations, however, do not want their names to be associated with something negative whether their brand could be set up on controversial domains.

"They want positive images - they want positive messages. They're not going to turn [.sucks] into a positive," Miholovich said.

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Photos: Eva Rinaldi | Flickr

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