A lot of companies time the announcement of new products, services or events with major domain conferences like last week's T.R.A.F.F.I.C. show in New York. Ironically, show week is probably the worst time to send me announcements, as I am so busy covering conference events that other announcements get filed in a "Hold" folder until the show is over and I finally get a couple of minutes to look at them. A lot of email also has to go unanswered during conferences where the daily schedule often runs from 8am to 2am (or later) the next morning. 

In sifting through the Hold folder today I came across Sedo's announcement that they will conduct a big premium .mobi domain auction on November 5th. Names scheduled to go on the block include bands.mobi, blackjack.mobi, boys.mobi, cellphones.mobi, doctors.mobi, games.mobi, quotes.mobi, racing.mobi, vip.mobi and xxx.mobi, to name just a few. There are obviously some great keywords in  this lot, making this event an especially interesting one for those interested in gauging current interest in the .mobi extension. 

dotMobi CEO Trey Harvin said, "dotMobi has seen the total number of mobile Web sites grow by eightfold since November 2007. The

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mobile Web is truly coming into its own as a unique medium, and the names available in this auction will be key in helping consumers find content designed specifically for their mobile phones.”  The auction rules specify that a .mobi compliant parking page must appear on the domain within 10 days after transfer, followed by a full web site with content relevant to the domain name within nine months of the initial domain transfer date. 

In an effort to promote development in the .mobi space, the registry said it is also requiring winners of previous premium auctions to comply with its requirements. They said they have recently contacted winners to remind them of compliance deadline dates that need to be met, adding that failure to comply with the terms and conditions may result in forfeiture of the premium mame and bid.
(Posted Oct. 1, 2008)