Yahoo auctioning their generic domain names -- sells Contests.com for only $380,000 -

[Vision]

How many of you knew about this Yahoo domain auction?

Yahoo should have promoted this auction on all their platforms! -- evidently, given the Contests.com paltry closing bid ($380,000) -- this auction was a big secret --

Which names will Yahoo auction next?

http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/06/17...ce=twitter.com

No sooner do we finish writing up Yahoo deadpooling yep another project, Gallery, do we get a tip that Yahoo apparently has another money saving/making plan: Selling off domains it owns. That’s exactly what it has done with contests.com, which sold during a live auction last night.

What’s really odd though (aside from an Internet giant actually selling a domain rather than buying one), is the price at which it sold. Contests.com is a killer domain name. People like my mother love nothing more than going online and searching for contests to enter to win stuff. But what’s crazy is that Yahoo sold it for only $380,000.

Let’s put that in some perspective. In February, Toys.com sold for $5.1 million in auction. Sure, that’s a better domain, but not over 10 times better. And a few weeks ago, Candy.com sold for $3 million.

How Yahoo failed to secure even a million for the name is beyond me. Just poor luck in the auction? This guy, who apparently left right before the auction started last night is flabbergasted as well.

I just really would like to know why Yahoo would even sell it in the first place? I know times are tough at Yahoo but is $380K really going to help much in the long run? No. Hell, it’d probably be better to keep the domain and just put a load of ads on it, perhaps even Google ads. Or, I don’t know, run some Yahoo contests on it. People on the web love that stuff, I hear.

[Gerry]

Wow. That is a stunner.

Gee, if they hold Lottery.com I might be able to get that for $3,800.00

[copper]

Didn't Yahoo recently sold other domains to Wordpress?

[denny007]

WTF ? $380K for contests.com is already huge price, I wouldn't pay more than $50~60K. Now - that some domain-analphabet from some blog thinks it should fetch million+ ? OK, he is naively diriculous, but how active domainers can think that or even comparing it as beeing same as if lottery.com would sell for $3,800 is beyond me...

[Gerry]

same as if lottery.com would sell for $3,800 is beyond me...

The whole point is ridiculous.

[denny007]

The whole point is ridiculous.

You do seriously believe that contests.com is worth even much more than $380K ? For me $380K is ridiculously MUCH

[INVIGOR]

Anytime I see a name go for a lot of money it's GREAT news! Just can't wait for one of them to be one of MINE!!!

Somebody has a "plan", I wish them luck!

[hina]

IF 380k is such a "steal", why didn't other people in the auction bid higher?

[nameadvertising.com]

IF 380k is such a "steal", why didn't other people in the auction bid higher?

.... Cause the sellers in this industry is a tight knit group always figuring a way to hype domain investments to the end users. I pity a good number of buyers at auctions, for the domain names worth is simply because of its inclusion in the show.

Anyone care to point out what happened to the inflated values bidders at auction shows paid in the past? They are for the most part languishing trying to recoup a tenth of their investment value via declining PPC.

Why would anyone pay that much for Contests.com? Because it was a Yahoo owned property. Today, it is as much as who sells it as much as what is being sold. Had Oprah sold the same name, she'd have gotten more out of it.

In this business, everyone is a wise ass. I am sure someone will contest my opinion in a heartbeat.

[copper]

Off topic, but, I hope Denny had enough insurance for that guitar

[Doc]

.... Cause the sellers in this industry is a tight knit group always figuring a way to hype domain investments to the end users.
Today, it is as much as who sells it as much as what is being sold.

Quite true .. some of us can sell a domain for pennies while others can make big moolah out of the same name.

Had Oprah sold the same name, she'd have gotten more out of it.

Will frame this one . Like it

[jasdon11]

contests.com is too generic - if it sold for $15k I wouldn't be as suprised as I am at $380k.

[james2002]

$380 K sale is good sale for Yahoo. I only think $100,000 range is the right one because of the domain being plural form.

[Area52]

Hey, it just might cover the yearly salary of a member of the board of directors.

[companyone]

Hi,

Is Yahoo Becoming a Domain Name Clearing House?

"Yahoo is apparently looking to unload a little dead weight in the form of valuable domain names. The floundering company got rid of the seemingly valuable name contests.com last night for the fairly rock bottom price of $380,000.

TechCrunch seems astonished by this number, suggesting that the company should have gotten something more in the neighborhood of the $3 million dollars Candy.com's owners walked away with. What's more important here is the mere fact that Yahoo actually sold the domain.

After all, big companies tend to hoard domains--just in case the company should ever see fit to use it. That Yahoo sold it via auction seems to indicate that the company is perhaps even more strapped for cash than any of us suspected."

SOURCE

_________
Best,
Dan

[richrf]

Hi,

I wouldn't spend more than $380,000 for a domain, if I didn't have an idea what I would do with it. I can attest to the fact that having a premium domain (I own Links.com) does not guarantee a huge payback.

But, if I had a great idea, then Contests.com probably is worth much more. The cost of branding a site on the Internet is huge. Microsoft is spending tens of millions of dollars to brand Bing.

So, any buyer has to weigh the cost of branding the different domain names when they put in a bid for a name. My guess is that the owner of Contests.com does not really have an idea yet what he will do with the domain and therefore is being a bit speculative in the purchase. It may turn out great for him (I think it will). But it is a speculation.

Rich

[tristanperry]

Yeah I seen this at another board; seems like the beginning of a dark (if not fatal) period for Yahoo.

[dominator]

it is always hypothetically possible that somebody gets crazy and pays $1M for it (or more)
but the seller should be happy with $380K

[copper]

For buyer, Contests.com is at least worth $380K.
It doesn't matter domainers think too high or not.

[nameadvertising.com]

For buyer, Contests.com is at least worth $380K.
It doesn't matter domainers think too high or not.

That's exactly all those home buyers were led to believe over the years.

Don't for a second think, this didn't happen in the domain world.