I read Mike’s post this afternoon, and it hit home because I made some comments about Moniker’s position as live auction leader.   Before the final lists and reserve prices were released, I said I think the multi-auction format “is going to change the landscape of the live domain auction industry as upstarts try to dethrone the industry leader.   This can only bring good things for domain buyers and sellers.” I didn’t root against them nor did I hope to see them fail, as some others might have done on various domain forums (I know Mike isn’t referring to me, but I wanted to clarify).
I think Monte and his team at Moniker did a tremendous job of bringing great names to auction at great prices.   I think the competition brought the best out in everyone, and we saw some strength during difficult times.   Moniker’s auction helped allay some personal worries about the state of the domain industry, and they helped bring liquidity to the domain market – you can’t really pay your hosting and other bills with domain names. The auctioneer was great, and he kept things moving, which is important with an auction with many lots.
When the multi-auction format was announced, I also wrote that I thought “a new industry auction leader (would be) anointed.”   While Rick did have a strong first showing, Moniker had a much better result than I expected.   Yom Kippur is just around the corner – mea culpa. I apologize for doubting Moniker, and I also congratulate them, Rick Latona, and Aftermarket.com for their successes last week in New York.
Competition usually brings out the best in everyone.   I believe all of the auctions achieved their main goals and were successful.   I credit much of this to the determination of the 3 auction houses to bringing the best domain names at the best prices to market.   Moniker still reigns as the leading live domain auction, and I can only hope the competition will help bring continued liquidity to the domain marketplace.

The Moniker Live Auction at TRAFFIC New York ended yesterday, reaching a grand total of $2,967,500 in sales. Quite simply, the well-priced good names sold (many above the reserve category).   I believe the final results of the auction were better than most expected, which was boosted by the sale of FinancialAid.com (and a small package of similar names).
For the most part, it appears that the most “usable” domains sold for the big money. Aside from a few of the .me names that sold for over $20,000, this was a very conservative auction.   Domain investors (myself included) are being more cautious about where to allocate funds, and it’s hard to justify spending tens of thousands of dollars on a domain name if the domain’s usage isn’t obvious.
Personally, I believe Floor.com was the steal of the show. Not only is a huge modular carpet and flooring company known as FLOR (pronounced “floor”), but it is the category defining domain name for a multi-billion dollar industry.   If FLOR did not buy this domain name, it could be a deadly mistake, as a competitor now owns the best name in their industry. That’s the problem with buying a “brandable” web 2.0 name, when the category defining generic domain may come on the market.
Below is the final auction tally, with my personal favorite best buys highlighted.   All in all, this was a successful auction.   Combined with the other auctions, there were almost $4 million in domain sales these past few days.
FinancialAid.com           $800,000
Floor.com                         $275,000
Camps.com                         $110,000
LT.com                               $100,000
Cleaning.com                   $100,000
Searching.com                   $90,000
BirthdayPresents.com     $80,000
Plans.com                           $70,000
Date.me                               $70,000
Sax.com                               $70,000
Literature.com                 $60,000
US.org                                 $45,000
ShortStories.com             $40,000
Clarinet.com                     $40,000
Microphone.com                 $40,000
SchoolLoan.com                 $35,000
Trumpet.com                       $35,000
Love.me                               $32,500
CEO.info                             $32,500
Winks.com                           $30,000
MusicStudio.com               $30,000
Hometown.com                     $30,000
AnsweringService.com     $25,000
LowRateMortgage.com       $22,500
RestaurantSupply.com     $22,500
Property.net                     $22,500
HerbalTeas.com                 $21,000
arizona.info                     $21,000
Kiss.me                               $20,000
Ask.me                                 $20,000
Pepperoni.com                   $20,000
Camera.net                         $20,000
DogTrainers.com               $20,000
Frisky.com                         $20,000
ChickenRecipes.com         $19,000
Bulldozers.com                 $18,500
Buy.me                                 $17,500
Delegates.com                   $16,000
AncientArt.com                 $15,000
Loan.me                               $15,000
Bilingual.com                   $15,000
LifeInsurancePolicies.com $15,000
Massager.com                     $13,500
Ankle.com                           $13,000
HolyGrail.com                   $12,500
FirstDown.com                   $12,500
Marry.me                             $12,000
YellowRoses.com               $12,000
Sponsored.com                   $12,000
Examinations.com             $11,000
WhiteRoses.com                 $11,000
MiniMart.com                     $11,000
Amateur.net                       $11,000
Calls.mobi                         $11,000
Show.me                               $10,000
Technology.net                 $10,000
Tmployment.net                 $10,000
RolePlay.com                     $10,000
BankStatements.com           $9,000
WirelessHeadphones.com   $9,000
GameDevelopers.com           $8,500
VYK.com                                 $8,000 (benefits the ICA)
Methodology.com                 $8,000
Joke.net                               $8,000
SleepWalking.com               $7,500
Watch.me                               $7,500
Play.me                                 $7,500
Pathologist.com                 $7,000
CelebrityWeddings.com     $7,000
ClinicalPsychology.com   $6,500
Rent.me                                 $6,000
Liabilities.com                 $6,000
JapaneseGardens.com         $6,000
HotBlonde.com                     $6,000
CatBreeders.com                 $5,500
Rescued.com                         $5,000
Starve.com                           $5,000
PressConference.com         $5,000
marblefloor.com                 $5,000
OilDrilling.com                 $4,500
TelephoneConference.com   $4,500
CollectiblePlates.com     $4,500
DivingBoard.com                 $4,000
MarriageTherapists.com   $3,000
Trades.net                           $3,000
BikeStands.com                   $3,000
ElectronicSupplies.com   $3,000
SurroundSoundSystems.com   $3,000
Cuban.net                             $3,000
Europe.mobi                         $3,000
Condominiums.net               $3,000
StopSmoking.info               $2,500
OfficeFurniture.info       $2,500
Spanish.mobi                       $2,500
VintageCigars.com             $2,450
SoyPasta.com                       $2,000
Stores.mobi                         $2,000
2009.org                               $2,000
666.mobi                               $1,500
MMM.mobi                             $1,500
Races.mobi                               $750
TOTAL     $2,967,500