$10 mill for Wall Street.com domain?

[jetset]

WHAT'S IN A NAME?

Quite a lot, if it's Wall Street.com....

Once an online gambling domain name, "Wallstreet.com" could raise millions for its present owners if an upcoming auction is successful, reports the Financial Times.

Experts told the UK newspaper this week that the domain could raise as much as $10 million - well up from it's previous record price back in 1999 of $1 million. While Wall Street.com was a stand-alone online gambling venture, the site never quite made the impact that was widely anticipated upon its purchase.

The newspaper reports that high prices for Internet domains are not unusual, and quotes the $9.5 million paid for "Porn.com" earlier this year.

The auction is being organised by Florida firm Monicker.com, where a spokesman told the FT that there was a $4 million to $5 million reserve price on the Wallstreet domain, but the auctioneer expected it to beat Porn.com in heavy bidding.

The virtual Wallstreet has in fact been idle, unlike the real life financial hub, for the past four years.

The current owners of the domain bought it from an online gambling company which found itself unable to trade in its main, US, market after the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in autumn 2006.

The cost of the entire business last winter was $1.

The market for domain names is still healthy, according to analysts, despite the fact that improvements in search engine technology have made them less important than site content in attracting customers.

Recent sales, in addition to porn.com, saw "vodka.com" sold for $3 million. The sites "computer.com" and "tax.com" on sale are expected to raise about a third as much as vodka.

The value of Web addresses is appreciating 20 percent this year, according to Monicker.com CEO Monte Cahn, whose Pompano Beach, Florida, company is the largest U.S. organiser of live Internet domain auctions. That beats the performance of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index, which is up 9.6 percent.

The growth comes as Internet use and online advertising surge. The number of sales commanding prices of $10 000 or more is "significantly'' higher this year than last year, one expert said.

Even idle, with just links to other Web sites, Wall Street.com is a big draw, Cahn told Bloombergs news agency. It attracts as many as 2 000 visits a day from people looking for banking, investment or tourism information, he said.

"It has great brand value because it's Wall Street.''

[jod5413]

My God, Jetset, that is astounding! Makes me wish I'd pursued a career in computers and the technology years ago It "bored" me (I am sooooo stupid!)

Jod

[jetset]

These auction results are going to be interesting, alright!

[jod5413]

Please keep us posted as you get the info, ok?

Jod

[Casinomeister]

Makes me wish I had a time machine

There is a small group of young guys in Florida who are plugged into CNN and othe news programs all day. Whenever a topic or name appears, they buy the domain if it's available. They have been making a fortune in doing so.

Nowadays it takes foresight and a bit of creativity to nab these domains. Simmo! has oggs.com mainly from this train of thought. Too bad he was off a little

Anyone up for crapbonuses.com?

Or crapmeister.com?

[jod5413]

Unfortunately, Bryan, though my creativity levels are off the charts, my foresight is waaaaay skewed

Jod

[SlotsWizard]

Originally Posted by Casinomeister

Anyone up for crapbonuses.com?

Or crapmeister.com?

Crapmeister.com has a higher PR than my site... I'm sure I could leverage that somehow.

[Mousey]

`Porn.com' Keeps Title as `WallStreet' Fails to Sell (Update1)

By Ville Heiskanen

Oct. 12 (Bloomberg) -- The WallStreet.com Web address failed to sell at an auction in Florida today after bids fell below owners' expectations, leaving Porn.com as the most expensive domain name sold this year.

The highest bid of $3 million was less than the $4 million to $5 million reserve price set by the owners, said Erin Burke, a spokeswoman for Moniker.com, the manager of the auction in Hollywood, Florida. Porn.com sold for $9.5 million in May.

WallStreet.com has been idle since it was sold four years ago for $2.3 million by a Caribbean-based casino, according to Monte Chan, chief executive officer of Pompano Beach, Florida- based Moniker.com. The casino paid $1 million for the address in 1999 and ran it as a gambling site, letting people bet on the stock market's movements.

The current owner is a European Internet entrepreneur and two other investors, whom Moniker.com declined to identify. The owners will now seek higher bids through a Web-based auction....