Here's the The Lowdown
from DN Journal,
updated daily
to
fill you in on the latest buzz going around the domain name industry.
The Lowdown is
compiled by DN Journal Editor & Publisher Ron
Jackson.
Epik
Introduces Their Own Currency for Buying Domains,
Funding Development, Etc. Plus DNCruise and
T.R.A.F.F.I.C. South Beach News
Attendees
at the Epik
Developer's Conference
coming up Sept. 15-17 in Seattle,
will find a little something extra in their
"goodie" bags - $795 worth of EpikBucks.
Epik Founder and CEO
Rob
Monster said his company's new
"currency" - also known as Developer's
Credit - addresses
what he called "the single most pressing issue in the
industry - liquidity, i.e. how to enable transactions between 2 or 3 parties to occur when there is no
significant cash available as a medium of exchange."
"EpikBucks work just like
currency," Monster said, " with the key difference being that instead of being backed by a central bank, they are backed by Epik. You can use them to buy domains,
pay for development services, bid at Epik auctions, or purchase services,
such as SEO or content,
Rob
Monster
Founder & CEO, Epik.com
from Epik partners.
We know that this solves a pressing market need. For example, last week, we acquired
50 domains from an owner for $12,500 in EpikBucks. The seller is using this balance to develop 50 new Epik-powered sites. However, instead of being locked in to buy 50 sites, he maintains the flexibility to use it for other things, or even trade it with another developer."
"The
main way that Developers will get this
currency is either as a conference
delegate, or by selling domains to Epik,"
Monster said. "Delegates will
automatically receive $795 in Developer
Credit just for attending the conference
- basically makes the conference free.
In addition, Developers who are long on
domains but short on cash can sell some
of their domains to Epik and receive
EpikBucks in return which can then be
used just like cash on a 1-for-1 basis
for purchasing domains, services or
bidding at auction. With EpikBucks, we are creating a medium of exchange that is convertible, transferable and will never expire.
"
By the way, we had a very interesting
in-depth interview with Monster in our August
Newsletter that was emailed
to opt-in
subscribers over the
weekend. We initially hooked up with Rob
to learn more about the upcoming Epik Developers Conference, but the discussion wound up covering
much more than that, including Monster's take on the shaky
state of domain parking and the future of domain development.
One
other note on the Epik
conference, a new Pioneer
Award will be presented
there, an honor that Monster
said is to be presented annually
"to the one person or
organization who most embodies
vision, leadership, and courage
in building a better Internet
through domains." Michael
Berkens
had more details on that on his blog
today, including a good deal of
speculation in the comments
section as to who the first
Pioneer Award recipient might
be.
We
also have some updates on a
couple of conferences coming up
in October. Chef Patrick,
who is hosting the first domain
conference on a cruise ship - DNCruise
- Oct. 11-15, just announced
a contest,
co-sponsored by Escrow.com,
offering a free conference pass,
cruise
from
Miami to Cozumel,
Mexico and air fare up to
$250. Patrick provides the
details on how to enter here.
To
be eligible to enter you need to
meet the following requirements:
Must
own at least 10 domain names
and have an interest in
domaining.
Must
be able to attend, tickets
are non-transferable.
Must
be traveling alone. Pass is
for a shared room.
Must
either be a U.S. citizen or
have a valid passport for
travel.
Must
be at least 21 years of age
(Carnival Cruise Lines
rule).
Must
not have previously attended
another domainer event.
Two
days after the DN Cruise
returns to Miami, the
big T.R.A.F.F.I.C.
South Beach
conference will be
getting underway at the
fabulous Loews Miami
Beach Hotel. Today
conference organizers Rick
Schwartz and Howard Neu
announced
a cool new twist
for their popular power
networking session. This
time it will feature
networking with members
of T.R.A.F.F.I.C.'s
Domain Hall of Fame.
Schwartz said, "As we looked over the list of attendees, we noticed that almost all of the Domain Hall of Fame Members who had previously been inducted were
already registered for the show. They will be asked to participate in a special Speed Networking session that will allow the newest domain investor to interact with the oldest. Engage, ask questions and make new friends and
opportunities This gives attendees a chance to mingle, grow and share and learn from the masters, those who you voted in to the domain Hall of Fame."
More
details will be coming later and the
exact names of the session's
participants have not yet been
announced, but when you look at the
roster of Hall of Fame members, there
are names that anyone would love to
spend some quality time with including
Schwartz, Frank Schilling, Kevin
Ham, the Castello Brothers
and Michael Berkens to name just
a few.
Mike
Fiol, DomainConsultant.com
One
other note today, what may be
the most attractive domain for
someone involved in the domain
name industry - DomainName.com,
along with associated property
and an accompanying registrar
accreditation - will be
auctioned off tomorrow
(August 31) between 9am and
3pm (U.S. Eastern time) by DomainConsultant.com
Mike
Fiol, one of the firm’s
founders, said "Acquisition
of DomainName.com would allow
instant entry into the
highly-profitable domain
registration market. Our
industry has had ups and downs
but one segment had made money
through it all: the registrars."
We need your help to keep giving
domainers The
Lowdown, so please email [email protected]with any interesting information you might have. If possible,
include the source of your information so we can check it out (for
example a URL if you read it in a forum or on a site
elsewhere).
