Over the past few days, people have written to me asking for two things.

1. A brief overview of Domainer Income

2. Specific details on different parts of the system.

The reality is, Domainer Income has so many advanced features, we simply cant squeeze into a short video. So I’m going to do a series of videos, focusing on specific features and how YOU can PROFIT from them.

I have just posted this general overview up on Youtube.

I love hearing your feedback, so please leave a comment and let me know what you would like to see.

Two days ago we went public with our Domain Investment Platform. The response was more than we could have imagined. People have been pouring in – signing up day and night. In fact, I stayed up to 3am just answering emails and talking to people who called us on the telephone or jumped on Skype to have a chat.

The great thing for me personally is knowing that people are already reaping the benefits from Domainer Income. I’m not going to mention names, but I thought I’d share some things:

This morning I spoke with a guy who develops domain names in a particular niche. He wanted to know how to use Domainer Income to find specific keyword domains. e.g. weight loss. When I told him he could search our database of 1 million+ domains that are for sale/auction, and showed him how to do it in just 2 clicks, he was blown away. “OMG – there is nothing like this – LOOK how fast THAT is!“.

Last night I had a call from someone who couldn’t believe he could find and buy domains with high PageRank. He went crazy – REALLY over excited – it sounded like he was jumping for joy! He just couldn’t believe it! In Australia, we call it a eureka moment.

As I type this, its 6pm on Friday night – I just got off the phone with another customer who has 5,000 domains – he wanted to know if Domainer Income could help him track his portfolio. Absolutely! Excel spreadsheets are a thing of the past – we keep track of expiry dates, DNS records – the LOT! I think I just got him his life back!

I was also appreciative of the kind comments offered by people on Facebook and Twitter.

Over the past couple of days, *many* people have reached out and shared with me their stories and frustrations with existing tools. The thing is – I agree! We created this investment platform well before anything else was out there. Now the cat has been let out of the bag. We have raised the bar considerably and we are going to keep raising it!

Out of all the people I’ve talk to, chatted with and received emails from, one common theme has emerged. Its the the lack of information sharing in the domaining industry. People just can’t believe we have published the information we have on Domainer Income. In fact, pretty much everyone I’ve spoken to has said “thank you”. One prominent domainer (who will remain nameless) cautioned me that many domainers might feel threatened that we have “levelled the playing field“. My response was “too bad, so sad“. I used to have the scarcity mindset, but not any more.

One final example: one of our Free Members emailed me personally to say he would love to upgrade to the Professional membership and get all the analytics and metrics from domain auctions, as well as the portfolio management tools. In the email he said thanks for creating the Free membership as it gave him access to our Expired Domains database (which we update daily). He said that he is going to work his way up to participating in larger auctions. That was really nice to hear because I know $$$ can be tight for some people.

To see which membership is right for you, go here.

About 3 years ago I made one decision that dramatically changed my life for the better. Just like the butterfly effect, that decision is going to change other peoples lives for the better too. Before I tell you what happened, let me give you some context.

As some of you know, I’ve been using the Internet for a long time (I started in 1989), before Mosaic, Netscape or the even the web. For the technical people, back then it was all about Bitnet, ftp and gopher, but that’s another story…. The fact is, I didn’t buy my first domain until the mid 90′s and I didn’t sell a domain until 2002! Why? There was simply no way of monetizing domains like there is now.

When I first began investing in domains, I tried and tested everything I could get my hands on. If there was:

A product – I’d buy it
A service – I’d subscribe to it
A forum post – I’d read it.

To cut a long story short, there wasn’t anything on the market that did what I wanted, so I developed my own system to help me find and buy, the RIGHT KIND of domains, but on a massive scale! It ended up being so big, we built a farm of dedicated servers at a top US Datacenter just to run it! It was a system that “plucked needles from haystacks” over, and over again!

But that led to another problem….

I was buying great domains and hording (stock piling) them. My behaviour was like Gollum from Lord of the Rings – my precious domains yesss….owww dot com….so beautiful. They were mine, mine MINE! In what seems a complete contradiction to many domainers, ego wasn’t a big a part of it. Why? I simply didn’t talk about it. I didn’t go to conferences. I didn’t have a blog back then either. It was “head down” and a hell of a lot of hard work! Then something changed. From a personal standpoint, this was the “tipping point” that changed everything for me….

One afternoon I was talking with my wife, Anna; I’ll never forget this conversation. Our system had identified a lot of high quality domains the week prior and I’d purchased all of them. Ok, I admit, I was actually complaining about the number of domains – there were too many good ones! Of course – I wasn’t going to let them drop or go to someone else for THAT price! If you buy at auction, you’ll know what I mean. Anyway, Anna said “Well why don’t you give this system to other people then?” I burst out laughing and said “Are you crazy? This is making us $$$$ – I’m not telling ANYONE about it”. Lets also not forget that domainers are a very secretive bunch. After a very long, somewhat heated discussion, Anna convinced me to release our domain investment platform to the public. I ended up showing a few domainers what we had done (under strict, non-disclosure agreements of course) and they were completely blown away. There was, and still is – nothing like it.

But that was 3 years ago! What happened I hear you ask? Well, I’m a perfectionist. If I was going to put my name to something, then it better be “the best in the industry”. Those that know me personally, know that I have a professional / corporate background, and have a firm belief in customer support. As such, we spent a lot of time and money making the interface more user friendly. We produced “how to video”s, created detailed online help, a customer support desk, we added all the trimmings a professional investor would expect. Of course, redesigning the site three times with a team of designers doesn’t help either. The fact is, we have been working day and night, making this happen. Its consumed late nights, weekends, kids school holidays – even Christmas afternoon (I should have been sleeping off lunch).

Now its done.

Would I change anything? No way! I still believe that there are MORE than enough domain names for everyone.

I also know this – Domainer Income will:

a) Help many people to generate passive income – making a HUGE difference to peoples lives from a financial standpoint.
b) Take the Domaining industry to a new level.
c) Create a level playing field, by making information available to everyone.

Today, YOU have an opportunity to be a part of that.

So – here is the result of many years of hard work – an enterprise grade, Domain Investment Platform. You now have everything you need to Find, Buy and PROFIT from domain names. Where do you start? I’ve created many FREE videos that explain Domainer Income in more detail. There is also a FREE Membership too – so nobody misses out on an opportunity to start making money with domains.

Please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts….. remember – this has been my baby for many years. I’d love to hear what you think.

Simon

PETA has announced their desire to acquire sex.com. Executive Vice President has written this letter to Dom Partners LLC stating:

“Visitors to the newly revamped Sex.com site could watch our sexy Super Bowl ads like “Veggie Love” (about how a vegan diet can enhance your time between the sheets) or watch Alicia Silverstone’s naked testimonial—living proof that a vegan diet does a body good.

They could gaze on sultry ads featuring gorgeous vegetarians, like Pamela Anderson and Owain Yeoman, or join the action and participate in one of our Sexiest Vegetarian contests. They could also read about the many vegan foods that are natural aphrodisiacs.”

Based purely on the above photo, I think that its a great idea; lets see Sex.com and PETA hook up.

A few weeks ago I received an email from someone who had a large portfolio of domain names for sale. This isn’t unusual, but what can be frustrating is seeing the same mistakes and unrealistic expectations, over and over again.

Consequently, I thought there are some interesting lessons for newcomers to the domaining industry, so I thought I’d share them. For confidentiality reasons I’m not going to reveal any information that could identify the seller or their domains. I have also “rounded out” the numbers below:

Parking Revenue: US$3993 per month
Price: 20 months parking revenue

The knee-jerk reaction for many people will be “$4k a month of parking revenue” is pretty good. From my perspective, it was “What’s the COST to me to keep this portfolio going?” After reviewing the documentation, I saw there were 3,300 domains. Of course, what was omitted from the documents was the COST to renew these domains. I know from experience, it costs about $17 per year for EACH of these domain names (they are ccTLDs). So you do the math…

Registration Fees: $56,200 per year
Parking Income: $47,916 per year
LOSS: -$8,284

Doesn’t look so good anymore does it? Now that is assuming that you are buying the portfolio for parking (not development or splitting it up for domain sales etc..).

The reason I’m pointing this out, is that there are many domains for sale at the moment and many newcomers (both investors and bloggers) to the industry.

If you are just starting out, domain investing can be time consuming and hard work. Don’t fall into the trap of buying up big straight away, you will almost certainly lose your $$$.

Just awhile ago I just received an email from the guys at Oversee regarding the Snapnames auction at Domainer Mardi Gras.

At first I thought….I’m already overloaded with conferences and auctions … do I really have the time to look at this? Honestly …. I couldn’t resist sneaking a peak and I’m glad I did. Why? Because these names are actually a lot better than some of the domains put up for auction recently.

Take a look at these .coms:

DatingOnline
DiscountDrugstore
OnlineDiscounts
DomainStats
HomeRefinancing
DownloadSoftware
CleanMyCredit
SpamProof
Lawsuits
ChocolateBars
OrganicFoodStores
ForexInvestments
Manufactures
PokerLessons
PublicGolfCourses
PorterhouseSteaks
Toasts
ActingLessons
SaturdayNight
SilverEarrings
WoodShutters

Not bad eh?

So, let me save you some time right now…. Home Refinancing gets $36.65 a CLICK! HELLO!!!!! Download Software gets $1.11 per click and has a local search volume in the USA of 6,120,000 EXACT matches !! Dating Online is another one at $4.73 a click with 22,200 EXACT matches.

You can bid online for these right now! Best of luck.

About an hour ago I received this email (below) from Latonas.

Having seen first hand, the “technical difficulties”, it was the right decision. The auction platform just wasn’t working and there was no real way for online bidders to participate effectively.

This isn’t that unusual for a TRAFFIC auction; you might recall that TRAFFIC DownUnder experienced a similar (but minor) outage.

—-

Due to technical difficulties, we made the difficult decision to pause the auction and restart it tomorrow on Proxibid.com/ricklatona. The new time will be 10:00 am Pacific on Saturday morning. That’s 1:00 pm on the East Coast or 19:00 central European time.

After hundreds of hours of testing our system, it broke. I don’t know what caused it but I promise that I will find out!

I feel just terrible about it and personally responsible. I sincerely apologize to everyone.

I really think stopping the auction when I did was the right thing to do. I just couldn’t let it continue without people having the ability to bid online.

The lots that sold before I paused the auction are going to stay sold. We are starting from where we stopped. Therefore, this will be the lot order:

340    RealEstate.co.za    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
350    Stutter.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
355    HN.ca    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
360    GolfClothing.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
370    FloorDisplays.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
375    W9.ca    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
380    BookBetting.com    300 USD to 400 USD
390    GamblingTours.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
395    ItsComplicated.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
400    Boston.mx    300 USD to 400 USD
410    WFH.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
420    LasVegasGuides.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
425    NaturalMeat.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
430    Meagan.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
440    FreshVegetables.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
450    Suffocate.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
455    LosAngelesPersonals.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
460    FishingSeason.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
470    Forex.ws    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
475    LasVegasInsurance.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
480    Meetings.com    200,000 USD to 250,000 USD
490    Divorce.mx    300 USD to 400 USD
500    DogFigurines.com    300 USD to 400 USD
510    TaxFilingOnline.com    300 USD to 400 USD
520    ORN.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
525    MensSuits.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
530    Sisco.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
540    Squads.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
550    TempLabor.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
555    LGY.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
560    CarStereos.com    150,000 USD to 200,000 USD
570    FiveCard.com and 5Card.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
575    YGA.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
580    LaptopReviews.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
590    Lemons.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
600    Decatur.net    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
610    Pizza.us (website included)    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
620    CatFood.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
625    Jchat.com    30,000 uSD to 40,000 USD
630    BO.net    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
640    Dietfood.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
650    Portland.org    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
655    Drun.com    500 USD to 750 USD
660    CardExpert.com    500 USD to 750 USD
670    UFT.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
675    LivePersons.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
680    JV.net    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
690    Gels.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
700    MotorcycleHelmets.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
710    eProfits.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
720    Sandra.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
725    VoiceOverIP.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
730    CPAParking.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
740    LasVegasBlackjackTournaments.com    300 USD to 400 USD
750    BabyFood.com    100,000 USD to 150,000 USD
755    BroadwayShows.com    800,000 USD to 1,000,000 USD
760    Consequences.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
770    SeniorCitizens.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
780    FreePorn.co.uk    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
790    Elizabeth.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
800    CamSex.com, CamSex.name, CamSex.mobi, CamSex.biz    250,000 USD to 300,000 USD
810    Sentimental.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
820    Joan.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
830    Wine.us    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
840    Washington.biz    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
850    Gadsden.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
860    DogRace.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
870    DrumStools.com    750 USD to 1,000 USD
880    RunningBack.com    500 USD to 750 USD
890    Teen.ca    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
900    AllenPark.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
910    Dietician.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
920    Savvy.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
930    LongIsland.com    undisclosed reserve
940    Copyrighted.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
950    ImportedWines.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
960    Avatars.com    400,000 USD to 500,000 USD
970    Houston.mx    300 USD to 400 USD
980    Illusionist.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
990    Kathryn.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1000    MovieTheaterFurniture.com    300 USD to 400 USD
1010    RushJob.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
1020    Scripture.com    100,000 USD to 150,000 USD
1025    TarjetasdeCrédito.com (IDN) CreditCards.com In Spanish    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1026    TarjetadeCrédito.com (IDN) CreditCard.com In Spanish    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1030    Veggies.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1040    HuntingLicenses.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1050    HuntingSeason.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1060    ZR.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
1070    eWagers.com    500 USD to 750 USD
1080    Dough.com    100,000 USD to 150,000 USD
1090    Deliver.ca    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1100    Zoom.ca    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1110    Murrieta.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
1120    HouseBuyers.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1130    HouseBuyer.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1140    AntiqueMotorcycles.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1150    CEORecruiters.com    750 USD to 1,000 USD
1160    AdMetrics.com and AdMetrix.com Portfolio Lot includes: AdMetrics.com | .net | .org | .co.uk | .eu | .ws | .biz    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
1170    WCX.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1180    AEIOU.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
1190    eTeen.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1200    Smelly.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1210    FileHost.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1220    EstateAppraisers.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1230    N.co.za    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1240    Schizophreniac.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
1250    Treinta.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
1260    Avengers.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1270    Astronauts.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
1280    DryRoastedPeanuts.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
1290    SkinnyPill.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1300    StampCollectors.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1310    Menos.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1320    TheAmazon.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1330    CoolShirts.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1340    Patty.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1350    SecondLanguage.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1360    POS.com    500,000 USD to 600,000 USD
1370    Fly.co.za    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1380    GoToHell.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1390    Handicap.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
1400    BF.com    300,000 USD to 400,000 USD
1410    GoldMines.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1420    DMCA.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1430    DudleyEngland.com    300 USD to 400 USD
1440    Antihistamine.com and Antihistimine.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1450    Consensual.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1460    Interning.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1470    Automating.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1480    Hear.com    100,000 USD to 150,000 USD
1490    LowCarb.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1500    Order.net    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1510    TanningEquipment.com    300 USD to 400 USD
1520    Aristocracy.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1530    InternationalBanking.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
1540    Suer.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1550    Thrilled.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1560    CoverBet.com    300 USD to 400 USD
1570    RagsToRiches.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
1580    Actresses.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
1590    CityZoo.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
1600    SecondJobs.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
1610    Blackjackers.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1620    FreshGeorgiaPeaches.com    300 USD to 400 USD
1630    eClassicCars.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1640    Banquets.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1650    CasinoStyleGames.com    300 USD to 400 USD
1660    MuscleTension.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
1670    Parables.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1680    TaxInformation.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1690    BasketballPlayers.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1700    Purchased.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1710    PayOffBills.com    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
1720    Otologist.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
1730    Buttercup.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1740    Divider.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1750    Beverage.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
1760    500.fr    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1770    LesHommes.fr    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1780    LesFemmes.fr    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1790    NDL.es    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
1800    BVP.ca    500 USD to 750 USD
1810    LKB.ca    500 USD to 750 USD
1820    Paged.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1830    Vegas.cm    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1840    BlackDeath.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1850    Wrestlers.com    40,000 USD to 50,000 USD
1860    HYB.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
1870    ImmigrationService.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1880    Reducing.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1890    Clarinet.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
1900    Inhibitors.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1910    Crises.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
1920    SportsPhotography.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
1930    FamilyStress.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
1940    SeasonPasses.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1950    Duplicity.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
1960    Selma.com    75,000 USD to 100,000 USD
1970    Hoodwink.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
1980    Rent.mx    300 USD to 400 USD
1990    ASP.com    500,000 USD to 600,000 USD
2000    SaltedPeanuts.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
2020    ConsultingFirms.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
2030    ASP.mx    300 USD to 400 USD
2040    USBMemoryStick.com    500 USD to 750 USD
2050    Ceremony.com    50,000 USD to 75,000 USD
2060    Enlargements.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
2070    CreditCardBilling.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
2080    Printed.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
2090    DataTransfers.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2100    Hexes.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2110    Offshore.info    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2120    Hell.com    600,000 USD to 700,000 USD
2130    BeautyQueen.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
2140    EGY.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
2150    Errol.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2160    FreeWallpapers.net    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
2170    SoftwareDesigners.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
2180    Gambling.gr    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
2190    Blessing.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
2200    FaceValue.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
2210    Laid.com    250,000 USD to 300,000 USD
2220    BellyRing.com    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD
2230    RVP.net    750 USD to 1,000 USD
2240    CustomerService.com    undisclosed reserve
2250    Benchmarks.com    200,000 USD to 250,000 USD
2260    Descarga.com    700,000 USD to 800,000 USD
2270    Fifths.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
2280    Homeowner.com    150,000 USD to 200,000 USD
2290    Meg.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2300    CertifiedHomeInspectors.com    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
2310    iCommemorate.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
2320    Cognac.cm    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
2330    STX.net    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
2340    Romance.com    undisclosed reserve
2350    DVDDrive.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
2360    DVDDrives.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
2370    WirelessAdapter.com    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2380    SafePC.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
2555    Chandeliers.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2565    DogFood.net    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
2575    FurCoats.net    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
2585    MinkCoats.net    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
2380    SafePC.com    3,000 USD to 4,000 USD
2555    Chandeliers.net    5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
2565    DogFood.net    4,000 USD to 5,000 USD
2575    FurCoats.net    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
2585    MinkCoats.net    1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
2605    Interacts.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
2615    WineRooms.com    2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
2625    InternetServiceProviders.com    30,000 USD to 40,000 USD
2635    WrappingPaper.com    20,000 USD to 30,000 USD
2655    EG.ca    10,000 USD to 20,000 USD

Latonas auction at T.R.A.F.F.I.C. Las Vegas got off to a very rocky start. The online bidding system wasn’t working properly and the auction stopped twice in the first 10 minutes. Putting aside the usual 6 second delay in video feeds, the current lots and bids were not being updated.

Here are the domain sales results for the first 10 domains auctioned off:

Atlanta.mx
300 USD to 400 USD
Category: Geo/Region
Latonas Estimated Price: 300
Current Bid: Passed In (no bids)

LeadershipSeminar.com
300 USD to 400 USD
Category: Business
Latonas Estimated Price: 300
Sold: $700 (AusBid)

Guavas.com
2,000 USD to 3,000 USD
Category: Food and Beverage
Latonas Estimated Price: 2,400
Current Bid: $2,000 (in room)

EngineeringDegrees.com
300 USD to 400 USD
Category: Education
Latonas Estimated Price: 300
SOLD: $2,400 (sold to Channel)

PostalCodes.com
300 USD to 400 USD
Category: Geo/Region
Latonas Estimated Price: 300
SOLD: $5,000

Two minute break as we “went down online“.

Layaways.com
5,000 USD to 10,000 USD
Category: Shopping
Latonas Estimated Price: 6,000
Current Bid: Passed In (no bids)

Washington.mx
300 USD to 400 USD
Category: Geo/Region
Latonas Estimated Price: 300
Current Bid: Passed In (no bids)

Second break, lasting about 5-10 minutes.

Sunburns.com
1,000 USD to 2,000 USD
Category: Health
Latonas Estimated Price: 1,500
Sold: $2,002 (to impulse)

Troops.com
Category: Society
Latonas Estimated Price: 20,000
Current Bid: Passed In (no bids)

BlackjackTrainingSoftware.com
300 USD to 400 USD
Category: Casino and Gaming
Latonas Estimated Price: 300
Current Bid: Passed In (no bids)

Given the technical issues it will be interesting to see if online bidders continue to participate in auctions at conferences, rather than bid online at sites such as Sedo or Snapnames.

The auction for Domainstate has ended, with the successful bidder being none other than an Aussie local (to me anyway). Congrats go to David Warmuz and the guys over at Trellian – you might also know them as above.com.

Many of us including Acro and myself have been discussing Halvarez for years – look at this thread on DNF. This isn’t anything new. Having experienced this first hand, you can see the date and time stamps I posted in the thread!

Unfortunately we may never REALLY know what went on. What is good, is that Snapnames had the guts (some could call it a moral obligation or duty of care) to admit they had a problem and are in the process of addressing it.

Can I suggest a few questions to be added to their FAQ:

Q1. Given all the noise (some could call it evidence) in the industry, why has it taken us 4 years and 8 months to identify this?

Q2. Given due diligence, accounting standards, segregation of duties etc.. how come we failed to identify this in the first place?

————-

• Bidding affected approximately five percent of total SnapNames auctions since 2005, most of which occurred between 2005 and 2007.
• The incremental revenue from the bidding represented approximately one percent of SnapNames’ auction revenue since 2005.

• Enhanced monitoring of bidding activity for suspect behavior
• Additional controls over financial transactions
• Specific domain name registration policies for employees

SnapNames, and all in the Oversee family of companies, are deeply disappointed with this incident.  Since its founding in 2000, SnapNames has been committed to the principles of fairness and trust; the company wants to assure customers—through both words and actions—that it remains committed to those principles.