Victor Pitts from Above.com shared some information about an auction the company is running with new gTLD domain names from Radix. Opening bids start at $200 and go up to $1,000. The auction features .Website, .Host, and .Press domain names.
One interesting aspect of this auction is that there is a buy it now option on all of the auctions. For people who don’t want to risk losing an auction, they can click the buy it now button to pay a higher price but avoid an auction. Buy it now prices run from $750 up to $3,000. I am unsure if a bid placed on an auction eliminates the buy it now option, but I would presume that to be the case.
Here’s some information Victor shared with me about the domain names that are included in the auction:
“The registry had these domains priced for registration at premium fees, which the same high fee due upon each renewal. Radix has converted the premium reserve price structure of these domains, so the buyer pays standard renewals on the domains after acquisition through this auction.”
At the time of publication, there don’t appear to be any bids yet. Bidders need to have an Above.com account to place a bid on any of these domain auctions. The auctions will be concluding on February 20th.
They are finding the premium model is not working to well, they will continue to see this into renewals. So they are asking a high upfront cost, and will try to build some registrants on their extensions. Many other gtld’s have offered $1 registrations this week, one year after the fact, many premium type gtlds with high premiums can be had for pennies on the dollar. I saw an auction for usa.vacations which comes with a $3,600 premium renewal, and it only got a bid of $175, the buyer is now into it probably about $7,200 if they choose to renew, and they could only yield $175 out, very weak.
A note above, the party who bid $175, asked to have their bid revoked once they found out about premium.
Their premium pricing structure is a PURE JOKE and proper failure IMO
These “reserve” domains from Radix have undergone a price conversion for the purpose of this special auction. This means that the domain reserve prices are slightly higher at acquisition, but renewal prices are at standard rates going forward. Not sure if Radix will convert any unsold assets back to the old rates, but I do know that the domain bought in this auction have the standard renewal price.
@Elliot – a buyer can bypass the auction process by agreeing to the BuyNow price. The auction would close for that domain.
There are a few domains in the reserve list which are being sold as a bundle (we call it portfolio). These are clearly identified. The winning bid wins all domains within that portfolio.