I’ve been bidding on and following Namecheap expiry auctions for .AI and .IO domain names. Most auctions have a standard starting bid of $15 plus the renewal fee. There are some that have $5 or $10 minimum bids, but most seem to be $15.
One thing I noticed is that some auctions have a starting bid of $400 with standard renewal prices. I believe these higher bid amounts are set by the registry operator, Identity Digital, and they impact certain names the registry identifies as “premium,” or some other designation they choose.
If the auction gets a bid, it becomes a normal auction and will end with the highest bid. The winning bidder pays the high bid amount plus the renewal fee. The interesting thing is what happens if no bids are placed on the $400 auctions. As time expires, the starting bid reverts to $10 and another 24 hours is added to the auction.
This is where interested buyers would need to strategize a bit. If they bid $400 in the final moments of the auction, extra minutes are added per the standard bid deadline procedure. If nobody else bids, they win the name for $400 plus the renewal feel. If someone else bids, it’s simply a standard auction.
If someone thinks $400 is too high, they can wait until it drops to $10. If nobody else places a $400 bid, it will drop to $10. They can then bid $10 and hope the auction doesn’t draw attention to the point of surpassing the $400 amount. If a few bidders notice the auction, it could quickly get to that amount or higher.
It’s sort of like a game of chicken to see if anyone else will bid $400, and if not, if the auction will end lower than that $400 amount once it starts at a lower price. It’s something to consider when debating whether or not to make that first $400 bid.
A couple of weeks ago, I held off on bidding $400 on a .AI domain name, and the auction reset to $10. I was watching the auction as it was closing and got distracted. A day or two later, I went back and saw that the domain name became available to hand register so I grabbed it. I don’t know what would have happened had I bid, but hopefully I got a good deal.
Can u ask namecheap ceo why they are unable to deliver domains even after you have won it . I won 400 usd .ai auction at namecheap. A day later i got email that auction for dat domain has been canceled. After checking whois , thst domain was handreg thru chinese domain registrar. What hppned to exclusive partnership with identity digital. Pls ask mr ram mohan also.