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| $1.3
Million Sale of Men.com Signals Rebirth of the Premium Domain Market
By Ron Jackson They say a picture is worth a thousand words - but for those who have invested heavily in domain names, it would be hard for any picture to convey what the following 40 words could mean to the domain industry: "Moniker.com and DomainSystems.com announce the sale of Men.com by Rick Schwartz for $1.32 Million. Moniker and DomainSystems will also be representing the sale of TradeShows.com and the premier name Candy.com which is expected to receive interest in the $10M - $50M range." |
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| Reports of a rebound in the
domain market have been filtering in for weeks now and if there were
any lingering doubts, the official confirmation of this blockbuster
sale (quoted above) should dispel them. The transaction was big
enough to catch the attention of the mainstream press and this Associated
Press wire report will be picked up by newspaper and
media outlets around the country. That's bound to make an impression
on businesses considering their own needs for a memorable internet
identity.
The investment group that purchased Men.com for a new portal site richly rewarded Schwartz for the prescient $15,000 investment he made to acquire the name in 1997. Schwartz, a well-known industry pioneer, was among the first people in the mid-90's to recognize that good domain names would one day be as richly valued as prime real estate. Schwartz told Domain Name Journal that he began negotiating the Men.com sale in July. The terms for the pure cash transaction require the buyer to make six monthly payments of $220,000 each, the first of which was received Dec. 19. Title to the domain (currently being held in escrow) will be turned over when the final payment is received on May 19, 2004. Schwartz has been predicting gargantuan payoffs for prime domains for several years at his eRealEstate.com website. With this sale, his vision has been realized and with his candy.com going on the market a much bigger sale may be just ahead. Just about all domain owners are sharing in the joy with Schwartz, Moniker & DomainSystems. It has been a long dry spell, but it looks like buyers are coming out of hibernation and once again recognizing the value of prime domain names. That can only be good news for everyone in the industry. |
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Copyright 2003
Domain Name Journal
A Division of
Internet Edge, Inc.