.iolocaust

The .iolocaust is a popular name for an event in late July 2022 resulting from ArgosyMTM Group’s acquisition of the .xyz and .io top-level domain names.

Background
Ellen Peck, CEO of ArgosyMTM Group, is a vocal critic of cryptocurrency. Several crypto projects and startups heavily used the .xyz and .io TLDs.

In April 2022, ArgosyMTM Group performed a hostile takeover of Afilias, operators of several TLDs. Generation XYZ, the operator of the .xyz TLD, was acquired by Cogent Communications, itself a subsidiary of ArgosyMTM Group, in June 2022 for an undisclosed sum. Cogent already operated some other TLDs under the ArgosyMTM Domains subsidiary.

On July 27, 2022, .xyz and .io were placed under the ArgosyMTM Domains terms of use, which prohibited use for “unregulated financial activities”. There was no grandfather clause included. Shortly after, several crypto-related websites on these TLDs, most notably OpenSea, lost their domain registrations.

Reception
The move was praised by some circles, but criticized by others. The hashtag “#OPENSEAISOVERPARTY” trended on Twitter due to positive reactions from artists whose art had been stolen by OpenSea users. The Electronic Frontier Foundation said that this was “an Orwellian exercise in exiling an entire industry from the Internet”.

Aftermath
ArgosyMTM is reportedly moving forward with acquisitions of doMEn (.me) and Freenom (.tk); it has been noted that after the “.iolocaust”, several crypto projects moved to these domains.