GoDaddy is a privately owned, Internet-based company that provides a variety of services including domain name registration, web hosting and e-business software sales. The company, which is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona, was founded by Bob Parsons. Parsons previously owned a financial services software company, which he sold in the mid-1990s upon retirement. He came out of retirement in 1997 to form Jomax Technologies, the predecessor to GoDaddy.
Since it’s inception, GoDaddy has risen to become the largest domain registrar in the world, with tens of million of domains registered to its clients. The company ranks as the world’s largest ICANN-accredited registrar; it’s approximately four times larger than its nearest competition. Recent corporate acquisitions include Outright, Locu, Afternic, and Media Temple.
GoDaddy has redefined Internet hosting services, and it has been the recipient of numerous industry awards and accolades. Among these awards are the 2001 Arizona BBB award for Business Ethics and the 2011 SC Magazine award for Best Security Team. In 2011, it ranked number four in the Phoenix Business Magazine list of “Best Places to Work in the Valley” and it made the 2012 Forbes list of “Best 100 Companies to Work For.”
Known for its sometimes controversial commercials and interesting spokespersons, GoDaddy also sponsors a number of charitable causes in support of domestic violence and child abuse awareness, and sports events, including NASCAR and the Super Bowl. In 2013, the company shifted its advertising strategy to focus more on small to medium sized business owners (SMB). Reflecting this change, its commercials and advertising materials shifted from “sexy” to smart.
In 2015, Pharmaceuticals.com was reportedly sold for $50,000 via Flippa. The sale was reported by TheDomains.com and other domain investment publications. Despite being acquired for $50,000, the Pharmaceuticals.com domain name is in expiry status at GoDaddy, and it is currently up for auction at GoDaddy Auctions. With just under two days remaining in the auction, there have been 102 bids from 24 different bidders, and the high bid stands at $19,250.
Last week, Andrew Allemann wrote about a GoDaddy job opening that will have a direct impact on the domain investment side of the business. GoDaddy is looking to fill the role of President, Domain Registrar & Investor Business. I think this is an important role, and the person will directly oversee all of GoDaddy’s lines of business that impact domain investors, including its marketplaces and auctions.
This morning, I noticed a job opening posted to LinkedIn that will not have a direct impact on domain investors, but it is an important corporate role. GoDaddy is looking to hire a Vice President of Investor Relations. The job was posted six days ago, and there have been 54 applicants on LinkedIn so far.
Here’s a brief overview of the job opening GoDaddy is looking to fill:
When I was looking at some upcoming auctions on GoDaddy Auctions last night, I saw a banner advertising the upcoming NamesCon domain name auction:
Although the banner indicates pre-bidding will begin on December 1, the auction page is now loading. When I visited, I was able to see quite a few domain names that will be included in the auction, in addition to the handful of high value names that were already announced. I looked up a handful of the additional names that have been added, and I can see those are all NameFind portfolio names (owned by GoDaddy).
Domain name submissions are now being accepted for the NamesCon Global domain name auction, according to an email I received from GoDaddy. This year, the live auction will be hosted by GoDaddy. The online portion of the auction will run on the GoDaddy Auctions platform. In previous years, the auction was hosted by NameJet. GoDaddy acquired the parent company of NamesCon in 2016. The live auction will be held during the NamesCon Global conference in Austin, Texas on January 30, 2020.
The DAE.com domain name expired in mid-October, and the domain name went to auction at GoDaddy Auctions. The auction for this 24 year old 3 letter .com domain name ended this afternoon, and DAE.com was sold for $126,000:
I have been curious about how GoDaddy’s appraisals change once an auction on its GoDaddy Auction platform closes. I am curious to see if the appraised value goes down since most auctions close below the appraised value, and the majority likely close considerably below that figure. The difference between appraised value and the auction sale price is expected since auctions are generally wholesale purchases while appraisals should align closer with the retail value of a domain name.
