To date, nearly 250,000 .co domain names have been registered. But is it just a bunch of specualtion?
.CO domains are now open to all. Must have keyword domains are registered, but like many other domains such as .mobi and .me, many keyword domains remain largely available in several different categories.
Memories of Failed Domains
The memories of failed domains and investments like .MOBI, have left many avoiding new domains, or at least avoiding hefty upfront investments.
How did Music.mobi ever turn out after the buyer paid $616,000 for the name? Or games.mobi for $401,500? Or flowers.mobi for $200,000 purchased by Rick Schwartz in 2007?
The last notable .MOBI sale for over $50,000 that was public, was Casino.mobi in September 2009 for $135,000.
Domain investors are increasingly wary about new domains. Although the flood of new domains presents challenges, some organizations and individuals are finding creative ways to use alternate domains. It’s just a matter of marketing and money.
For anyone who invests in domain names, owning the best .COM domain is an important part of a portfolio, but taking some risks can pay off.
If .CO domains turn out to be successful, it could serve to be a smart investment for those who added .CO domains to their portfolio early.
All that said, which .CO domains did you register?
We are conscious about our budget and don’t have the money to speculate, but we registered a handful through GoDaddy including LaborDay.co, MemorialDay.co, IndependenceDay.co and a few other holidays.
The keyword "Idol" was made even more popular by the success of the T.V. Show American Idol, which owns AmericanIdol.com
Sedo GreatDomains is reporting the sale of Idol.com for 120,000 Euro (which converts to about $155,000 USD). Earlier this year, Idol.com along with other killer domain names like Strawberries.com and Mad.com went up for auction at Adam Strong’s Domain Madness 2 auction, but the name failed to get a buyer.
American Idol season 9 which aired its Finale in May, helped send plenty of type-in traffic to the domain name Idol.com. Each season the show sends thousands of visitors to Idol.com, which at the time of this story sits on a parked page with ads – including American Idol ads paid for by advertisers with video recap sites and tickets for sale.
American Idol Season 10 auditions started this past week across the U.S.
Past “Idol” Domain Sales
Idol.com isn’t the first Idol keyword to sell.
According to NameBio, Idols.com sold for $19,000 in 2007 via Moniker. Even typos of AmericanIdol.com have sold in the hundreds – Aericanidol.com and Amerciaanidol.com fetched under $500 a piece through Sedo in March 2007. Neither misspelling receives any significant traffic, according to Compete.
Rick Schwartz sold the domain name iReport.com to CNN for a whopping $750,000. The URL now re-directs to ireport.cnn.com
While the amount of the price tag for PunchBowl.com sold by Rick Schwartz is undisclosed, it is almost certain that the final sales price is a multiple 6 figure deal plus other considerations.
Multiple 6 figure deal + other considerations likely means some sort of long term deal that includes a one time payment and recurring paychecks based on company profits – similar to the deal he brokered for his Candy.com domain name which sold for $3 million plus other considerations.
Rick Schwartz received his first dividend payment from Candy.com this month, though not his biggest check to date, with Candy.com sitting nicely atop of the Search rankings and enjoying type in traffic, if the terms of dividends are for years down the road, his dividend payments are certain to improve.
In the not too distant future I will be announcing my 12th domain sale is PunchBowl.com. Another multiple 6 figure deal plus other considerations. There should be a press release forthcoming and the buyer will decide how much of this to go public with as there will be a confidentially clause .”
While I may not always agree with Rick’s opinions and often have difficulty understanding the point of his blog posts – I always find his sales amazing.
Take a look at the press release issued earlier today.
Purchase and acquisition transaction of Punchbowl.com between Punchbowl Software Inc. and “Domain King” Rick Schwartz
Framingham, Mass., July 19, 2010 – Punchbowl Software, Inc. today announced the acquisition of the web domain Punchbowl.com from legendary domainer Rick Schwartz. Punchbowl Software Inc. develops web applications for start to finish party planning. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
With Punchbowl.com, the company plans to re-launch the domain as a leading consumer site for party and event planning. With new technology and a new look, the party planning site will be ready to launch in time for the holiday season of 2010. At Punchbowl.com, consumers will be able to plan a party from start to finish. The service will offer unique features including the innovative “Date Decider” which enables users to find the best calendar date for their event, beautiful Save the Dates and digital invitations, photo and video sharing after the event and other services that will help consumers throw an unforgettable celebration.
“A punchbowl is the center of any great party,” said Matt Douglas, CEO, Punchbowl Software. “The acquisition of Punchbowl.com will allow us reach new customers and expand our growing customer base.”
Rick Schwartz, aka the “Domain King,” is one of the early domain pioneers. Domains he has sold include iReport.com to CNN for $750,000, Candy.com to G&J Holdings, LLC for $3 million plus dividends, and Men.com for $1.3million back in 2004.
“During my domain career, I’ve sought prime, recognizable domain names that were easy to spell, easy to remember and could be developed into a major brand in their respective industry” said Rick Schwartz. “I was the first to see the intrinsic value in Punchbowl.com and knew that it could be developed into a huge brand in the social expressions and celebrations industry. I’m thrilled that Punchbowl Software will now develop the domain to its full potential.”
The party planning industry is ripe for a new entrant to provide a service for party hosts. Whether it’s a mom planning a birthday party for her five year old daughter, a friend planning a baby shower, a family planning their annual reunion, or the company Christmas party, everyone has multiple reasons to plan a party every year. As the industry moves from traditional offline sources to online, the market will consolidate. A new brand will emerge – Punchbowl.com – that will define this new industry.
Stay tuned for frequent updates and milestones for the new Punchbowl.com. While you can visit the Web site in its current appearance, the complete re-launch and re-branding will not be official until sometime this fall.
“Working with Rick Schwartz on this domain name acquisition has demonstrated to me that he’s not only a visionary in the domain industry, but he’s a savvy businessman who understands how to extract the most value from the Internet” said Matt Douglas, CEO, Punchbowl Software. “I couldn’t be happier to be the new owner of Punchbowl.com.”
About Us: About eRealEstate.com
Rick Schwartz, aka “Domain King” and “Webfather,” is the CEO, President and Cofounder of T.R.A.F.F.I.C. found at TargetedTraffic.com– the premiere domain conference for the domain industry. It is both the oldest and largest and attracts over 500 of the top professionals in the industry in what was a by invitation only event until 2009 and now open to all. As one of the early domain pioneers dating back to 1995, Rick has a knack for predicting big trends and getting it right. He may have been the first to recognize the value of “type in” traffic which is now commonly referred to as “direct navigation” — the most potent and targeted traffic on the net. Rick has a prime portfolio of some 7000 one and two word domains, and is considered by many to be among the leading experts on domain names, traffic, Web site flow and valuation. ‘http://www.erealestate.com & ‘http://www.ricksblog.com
Contact Info: Media Contact:
Matt Douglas
Punchbowl Software Inc. [email protected]
650 814 3393
If you haven’t noticed by now, the Group Buying industry is continuing to heat up – and with the local city focus and websites with less-than-premium domain names ringing up business, it’s an online industry that offers cheap entry to the smaller companies and individuals trying to get a piece of the pie.
TownHog.com was registered in October 2009. In April, the website had nearly 20,000 visitors according to Compete.
I’m not here to tell you it’s easy to build or maintain a website, or even cheap, but for some evidence of the claim that the online group-buying business can attract the startup masses, see some of these recent and past highlights.
Group Buying Startups using Hand-registered domains – and being successful
For startups on a budget, the availability of category-killing domain names isn’t plentiful, so companies are turning to hand-registering domain names for their online businesses. It’s alot easier to not get swept up in having-to-own a premium .com, especially when competition in the Group Buying industry is still relatively small.
The number of group buying sites offering local deals as of June, was about 80 websites. Kevin Ham, who owns some of the best domain names in the world, even launched his own group buying startup using GoodNews.com. Now, take a look at the names other companies are using to enter the market with:
CrowdSavings.com registered in July 2009 recently hit 12,000 visitors per month.
There are plenty of group buying websites who plucked their hand registered domain names in the past year, here are just a few.
LocalGroupDeals.com was registered in october 2009.
GetGrouby.com was created in March 2010.
Youvegottagetit.com registered in April 2009.
WordPress Developers busy developing Group Buying Themes and Plug-ins?
Surprisingly, there still doesn’t appear to be any WordPress themes available yet to help webmasters launch their own group buying websites quickly. But plans are in the works, with people already posting projects online to have developers build plug ins and more that mimic sites like LivingSocial.
As most of you know the “Group Buy” craze has caught on like wildfire. Along with the craze comes countless clones of both groupon and livingsocial. Instead of trying to create our own site we want to help others buy providing “Group Buy Script” available for purchase.
Right now we are seeking a programmer who is well versed in WordPress. Ideally we would like for you to develop a WordPress plugin which is simple for someone to enable. The plugin should have all the features of a site like group and live social.
China Group Buying Sites Gaining Steam
An article that appeared in Information Week, quoted people, including one person who happens to be involved in the group buying business.
The manager of Chinese website Fenpier.com, Ye Fei, said that it costs around $737 a month to run one of the sites, with about two-fifths going toward renting a server and the rest to promote and run the Web site. Ye added that manpower requirements are low, especially in the early stages. “As far as I know, there are some group-buying sites that are being run by just one person,” Ye said.
The low entry barriers and relatively simple business model have led to a large number of competing sites. In China alone there are already more than 300. Small sites are able to thrive by focusing on one area. In large cities, successful sites usually have different offers for various neighborhoods.
Reinvent is changing its image, and taking a more aggressive approach to domains and the internet
Reinvent.com, the corporate web site of Domain Guru Kevin Ham, has reinvented itself.
The company that has steadily been expanding it’s presence on the web by developing its portfolio of domains such as BlackFriday.com, Vancouver.com, and GoodNews.com – is now focused on expanding its team and ideas.
The company is growing, both online and offline.
With Kevin Ham owning a lion share’s of the best domain names on the web, Reinvent is positioning to become a major player on the internet, and part of that process appears to be taking a much more aggressive approach.
Look Out Demand Media, Here Comes Reinvent
If Kevin Ham and his crew at Reinvent can continue to pull together to develop domain names into their own business units, companies like Demand Media and Idealab, may need to look out. Reinvent owns some of the best properties on the net – names like Attorney.com, Menopause.com, Spanish.com – and yes, even God.com.
The new site design is “lite” on content and looks to be a work in progress. With only a couple pages (as opposed to dozens of pages on the old site), the company is focusing on hiring employees to continue it’s growth.
We have a unique approach to total rewards that emphasizes community, wellness, and development. Our culture is uniquely friendly, casual, and apolitical. We share information freely with team meetings and updates and celebrate regularly with team lunches, foosball and pool tournaments, Rock Band jam sessions, and of course our monthly birthday extravaganzas.
In Canada, we offer 100% employer-funded extended heath benefits, and subsidize 50% of provincial health plans for the employee, couples, or families. We match your RRSP contributions, starting at 20% in year one and growing to 100% in year eight (with some indexed limits). We offer flex time, telecommuting and nearly four weeks of paid time off to start (vacation, personal days, and winter shutdown). As part of our leadership development program, we offer an additional 40 hours per year of paid time to serve on the board of a local non-profit or cause, or flex time and the use of up to four personal days per year to volunteer or participate in local fundraising campaigns or events.
We offer ongoing professional development of up to $1,500 per person each year (related to your craft) as well as peer-led tech talks where we learn from each other. We do not believe in burning people out and you’ll see the office nearly empty by 6:00, time we hope you use for friends and family.
The new home page, rotates different calls to action with each click – focusing on the power of Reinvent’s portfolio. The variety of quotes include:
Domains are the hub of the internet and we own a very big piece.
Where’s the next big idea coming from?
Traditional Media is struggling…there’s a new kid in town.
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