YNOT EUROPE – As part of the run-up to the official launch of the dot-xxx domain space, expected to occur in early September, the non-profit organization tasked with setting business standards for dot-xxx domains is seeking qualified applicants to serve on its policy council.

Based in Washington DC, the International Foundation for Online Responsibility will be funded by a $10 contribution from the purchase price of each dot-xxx domain name. IFFOR’s responsibilities and obligations exist as part of the contract dot-xxx registry ICM Registry signed with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers and are outlined online.

According to IFFOR Executive Director Joan Irvine, the policy council will be composed of nine members, five of whom will be selected from various segments of the adult entertainment industry. Irvine said the council’s composition will reflect the global nature of the domain space. Currently, the nominating committee expects to select two representatives from North America, two from Europe and one from the Pan Pacific region or South America. Three of the other four will come from mainstream segments representing privacy and security experts, child protection advocates, and free speech and expression organizations. The ninth member, by charter, is IFFOR’s chairman of the board and ICM’s chief executive, Stuart Lawley.

“Serving on the policy council for IFFOR will provide a truly unique personal opportunity,” Irvine said. “Members will be part of a team of prominent and insightful leaders who will be singularly devoted to the fulfillment of the organization’s charter and part of a global effort that seeks to shape the future of online adult entertainment in a responsible manner.”

Members of the inaugural policy council must be “stakeholders in the adult entertainment community,” but they need not be dot-xxx domain owners, Irvine said. In part, that’s because no one will be able to register a dot-xxx domain until September but policies and best-practices governing dot-xxx domains must be established prior to the commencement of registration in order to provide potential domain owners with guidelines for buying decisions and site development.

According to IFFOR documentation, the stakeholders’ community is defined as a company or person who provides online, sexually-oriented adult entertainment intended for consenting adults or for other community members; representatives of those providers, and companies and individuals who provide services to providers and their representatives, like third-party billing companies, marketing companies and other professionals.

Initial policy council members will serve a term of one year; thereafter, a policy council member’s term will consist of three years. Terms will be staggered, Irvine said, in order to avoid a need to replace the entire council at once. Members should expect to attend one face-to-face meeting annually in addition to at least three teleconferences. IFFOR will cover council members’ travel expenses for the face-to-face meetings, Irvine noted.

Policy council members also will be responsible for communicating with and managing what Irvine called “stakeholder groups,” which will function as subcommittees devoted to segments within the dot-xxx community. Most likely, stakeholder groups will comprise divisions like webmasters, service providers and content producers, though dividing lines are among the operating issues the policy council may address.

In addition, the policy council will help the IFFOR board of directors determine where to award financial grants designed to address issues of importance to the stakeholder community. Irvine mentioned child and consumer protection and free expression as some causes IFFOR grants may support.

In return for their devotion to and effort on behalf of IFFOR, each policy council member will receive a stipend of U.S. $15,000 annually.

“We want to make sure people who are on the council are compensated for their time, because we value that,” Irvine said. “By paying a stipend, expense associated with lost work hours becomes a non-issue.”

However, she added, “People do not have to accept [the stipend].”

The policy council application is available online; deadline for applying is July 5. All applications will be reviewed by IFFOR’s nominating committee, which consists of Irvine, Lawley and the other two members of IFFOR’s board of directors. The board plans to reveal policy council members’ identities in late August. Irvine said the council’s first meeting “will be in the Fall.”

“I’ve helped develop policy for the online adult entertainment industry for nine years,” said Irvine, who previously served as the chief executive for the Association of Sites Advocating Child Protection. “Although the resulting best practices related mainly to online child protection, we always needed to consider many facets: the internet, available and emerging technologies, regulations in various countries, ability of companies to comply, etc. I’m looking forward to the opportunity of working with a diverse group of people and the challenge of developing policies in expanded areas.”

Lawley added, “This is the first time that representatives from both mainstream and the adult industry will work together in a meaningful way to develop policies for a safer adult entertainment experience on the internet. We believe this will result in enhanced surfer confidence and more business for companies with dot-xxx domains. It’s gratifying to see this vision become reality.”

For more information about IFFOR’s scope and the policy council’s role in regulating dot-xxx domains, visit IFFOR.org.