DomainMart Introduces Advanced Domain Name Auction Strategies

DomainMart has introduced two new types of domain-name auctions. For a seller, a sealed-bid auction, when used prudently, is superior to existing domain-name auction types, while a reciprocal buy-sell bid auction simplifies and provides a fair allocation for the purchase/sale of supplementary domain names.

Berkeley, CA April 19, 2004-DomainMart, a leading provider of domain-name secondary-market services, today introduced two new domain-name auction services: a sealed-bid auction and a reciprocal buy-sell bid auction.

The sealed-bid auction, when used prudently, allows sellers to realize a higher sale price for their domain names than with current auction services. The reciprocal buy-sell bid auction benefits both buyer and seller by simplifying the bidding process to yield a fair exchange price. DomainMart is the first to provide such auction services for domain names.

If the seller of a domain name believes that multi-bidders are likely to overestimate each others maximum bid, she would be better off using a sealed bid-auction than an English auction, popularized by eBay, says Alex Tajirian, President and CEO of DomainMart. Conversely, when the seller believes that the bidders will underestimate each others maximum bid, the English auction is superior, adds Tajirian.

Tajirian also points out that a sealed-bid auction can be superior to one-on-one negotiations if a potential buyer is unaware that he is the sole bidder.

Under a sealed-bid auction, each interested buyer submits a bid without knowing who else is bidding or how much. The winner is the highest bidder and the domain name is sold at the highest bid price. Using a slight variation (known as Vickery auction), the price paid by the winner (with the highest bid) is that of the second-highest bid.

Sealed-bid auctions are widely used by investment banks.

A reciprocal buy-sell bid auction is appropriate and expedient when each of two domain-name owners wants to own both names. For example, each of the owners of supplementary domain names, like AuctionDomain.com and DomainAuction.com, prefers to own both so as to decrease customer confusion. Using the reciprocal buy-sell bid auction, one of the owners designates a price for which she would either buy or sell at, and the other owner chooses which side of the deal he wants. For example, one announces $10,000, and the other says at that price he will buy it.

Confusion over supplementary domain names can also arise when customers arent sure of the extension of the domain name -- whether the site they seek is .com or .org, for example.

These services complement several that DomainMart already offers:
1. Providing an appraisal for a domain name to aid a bidder in establishing a reserve price, i.e., the minimum price the seller would accept. An appraisal also reduces price uncertainty for the buyer, resulting in making informed strategic bids.
2. Giving advice and participating in determining the best auction type to use and the best negotiation strategy.
3. Acting as an independent third party to set up and monitor the auction.
4. Assisting in reducing risk and uncertainty associated with the escrow and transfer-of-ownership process.

DomainMart is a leader in providing domain-name secondary-market services, including appraisal/valuation, auction, escrow and ownership transfer, leasing, parking, management, and protection since 1996.

For more information, please visit http://www.DomainMart.com or contact:

Tom Saito, Marketing Specialist
DomainMart Inc.
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Tel: +1 (415) 905-4234