The proposed .xxx porn domain has been mysteriously dropped from ICANN’s board meeting agenda.

The news was presented by ICANN chairman Vint Cerf, who surprised delegates at the open meeting of ICANN’s governmental advisory committee (GAC) in Vancouver on Tuesday by announcing that the debate surrounding the new domain had been dropped from the board meeting agenda.

Cerf said that more time was needed to review a 350-page ICANN report on the domain's feasibility before discussions could proceed.

But analysts point out that the unreleased report has already been available for some time and that it is broadly in favour of granting the domain anyway.

According to Techdirt.com other possible reasons for the delay are EU and US state intervention.

EU commissioner Viviane Reding is said to have called the head of ICANN Paul Twomey and threatened to withdraw all the EU's representatives unless the issue was pulled.

Meanwhile various factions within the US government are also said to be alarmed at the idea of a porn-only domain.