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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. |
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Reflections
on HA's First Live Domain
Auction + Mann Goes Behind the Mike &
New Video from bree (featuring David Castello)
Has Band on Verge of Major Breakout
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It
has been another
very interesting week in the domain
business. All eyes were on New York
City last night (Wednesday, Nov. 21) where Heritage
Auctions (HA) staged their
first live domain auction. While
domain auctions have been commonplace
within the domain industry for many years, this
was the first time that one of the
world's three largest auction houses (an
elite trio including HA, Christie's and
Sotheby's) has gotten into the game -
making it a landmark event. The
auction, produced by Aron Meystedt,
the Founder & Director of HA's new
Domain Name & Intellectual Property
Division, produced good results for a
maiden voyage with nearly 40% of
the domains offered being sold. Total
sales came in at just under $420,000
with XZ.com ($138,000) and Animation.com
($112,125) producing the biggest
sales. The
marquee name in the event, MutualFunds.com
(which had a $1 million reserve) did not find a
buyer, something I was surprised to see as I
think the domain would be worth several times
the reserve to the right company.
I also thought having the sale in New
York, where Wall Street reached an all-time |
Aron
Meystedt, Founder & Director,
Domain Name & Intellectual
Property Division
Heritage Auctions (HA.com)
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high this week, made a sale more likely.
Still, you never know when the right buyer
will appear and someone may yet step forward as the names not
sold in the live event will remain available on the
HA website for 60 days. |
HA
promoted the auction heavily and they knew going
in that they have wage a long term educational
campaign to spread awareness of the intrinsic
value in great domains. The sale drew plenty of
mainstream media attention too. Forbes
published a lengthy
piece by Deborah Jacobs about
it today. While I don't agree with most of
her characterizations and conclusions (and the Wikipedia all
time top 20 domain sales chart she cited
is riddled with errors - including website
sales like VacationRentals.com being counted as domain
sales and sales that never even happened,
like Israel.com, being ranked) it is still
good to see mainstream press taking an interest
in domain names. They too should become better
educated as time goes on.
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Remember
that the mainstream press thought the
party was over with the .com bust in 2000,
but a few billion dollars worth of
domains have been sold since then and many
millions worth are still being sold every
week. We also saw a very
significant
jump in market activity in the
last quarter (3Q-2013). If HA stays the course,
I think they will be well rewarded in the
years ahead, particularly if they can
reach the right end users who make
blockbuster sales happen. |
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Michael
Mann
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Elsewhere
- hold on to your hats - the venerable Domain
Masters internet radio program at WebmasterRadio.fm
is going to be revived next month
with outspoken Domain Hall of Famer Michael
Mann behind the mike! The
show, which originated with Monte Cahn as
host (followed by Victor Pitts) has
been on hiatus since March.
Mann
announced on his Facebook page today that
the show is coming back with him handling
the hosting chores. If you follow his
posts there, you know Michael doesn't leave
much unsaid, both personally and
professionally. He is not only one of
the most successful domain investors of
all time (having sold BuyDomains.com to
Name Media) he is also one of the
most colorful - making him a perfect
choice to host the show. I know I'll be
tuned in for the first broadcast (the time
and date has not yet been announced). |
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Last,
but certainly not least, if you follow this
column regularly you know all about how another
Domain Hall of Famer, David
Castello, has returned to the music
business as the manager and hard rocking
drummer in a rapidly rising Nashville-based trio
named for red hot lead singer and guitarist bree.
I've been following their adventure from the
start and they just took another huge step
forward with the release of a stunning new
video for "I'm the Boss", a
standout cut from bree's debut album, All
American Girl.
The
video, directed by Casey Culver and shot
at the Joy Mansion in Nashville,
debuted at a premiere party Wednesday night at
Music City's Club No. 308. It's as good a
video as I've seen from any artist, new or old.
So, if you love great rock and roll, there is no
better way to start your weekend than clicking
the play button on the video below! |
Capture
from bree's "I'm the Boss"
video. |
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(Posted November
22, 2013)
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For
all current Lowdown posts - Go
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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).
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