Domain Auctions

A few days ago, I wrote about how the Backpage.com domain name expired and was in pending delete status. Prior to its expiry, Backpage.com had been seized by the US Department of Justice. Backpage.com wasn’t renewed, it fully deleted, and DropCatch.com caught the domain name and sent it to a three day auction.

The auction concluded this afternoon. After dozens of bids and backorders were placed, the auction closed with a high bid of $259,500. A screenshot of the final sale price was shared by Shane Cultra on X:

Backpage.com was once one of the most popular classified advertising websites online. According to Wikipedia, “Backpage let users post ads to categories such as personals, automotive, rentals, jobs and adult services. It soon became the second largest online classified site in the United States.” It was also apparently a hub for illicit activities.

In 2018, the US Department of Justice seized the website and Backpage.com domain name. At that time, the USDOJ issued a press release announcing the domain name seizure with a link to the indictment. A screenshot of the landing page from Screenshots.com can be seen below with law enforcement seals and seizure notification:

TRC.com expired at the end of November 2024. The domain name was apparently registered at a domain registrar that doesn’t have a deal with an expiry auction platform, so it was fully deleted from the registry. As a result, drop catching auction platforms competed to catch the domain name once it made it through the expiration cycle.

Sav.com caught the domain name, and TRC.com was entered into a ten day auction. After a great deal of extended bidding, the auction for TRC.com closed at $100,000. There were 304 bids placed by 22 different bidders.