OnlineDomain.com Domain Name News & Opinions
Undeveloped announced that it sold the domain name CryptoBank.com for $125,000 this week.
Their tweet announcing the sale included a note to domainers: “Domainers take note. Crypto domains are taking off.”
It was also announced today that the domain name Whiskey.com was added in the Domaining Europe Berlin auction. The domain has a reserve in the €3,500,000 – €4,000,000 range.
The auction will run online from May 7 to May 28 on the Undeveloped auction platform and is part of Domaining Europe 2017. Domaining Europe 2017 is held in Berlin Germany from the 14th to the 16th of May. Tickets for the event are still available.
Other domain names that have been announced so far are:
advertisingnetwork.com
consorcios.com
gastronomy.com
harddrives.com
sevilla.com
zut.com
instalment.net
29.at
32.at
5.at
f.at
g3.at
You can submit domains for the auction either here or by sending them to auction@domainingeurope.com.
Undeveloped.com was recently acquired by Epik.com for 4 million Euro.
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Don’t think Whiskey.com will sell with a 3.5/4.0 mln EUR Reserve Price … zero chances … 🙂
Auctions are not the best way to divest this kind of premium names, you have to negotiate directly with end users.
Plus, pricing retail in an auction is a mistake … and IMHO Whisky.com, product-wise, is more valuable than Whiskey.com, just my two cents.
Andrea, you are 100% correct. Their reserve should be what they paid for it; $200k. They could easily make at least $100k on it.
Michael, the key here is that an auction is not the right way to sell it.
IMHO it’s a 7 figures name for the right end user, but less than 3 mln USD.
That said, selling it at auction for 300k or so would mean leaving a lot of money on the table. 🙂
@Michael Castello,
Auctions can be unpredictable, of course. That’s half the fun. But I’m curious why you’d appraise Whiskey.com at 1/10th the value of Whisky.com, which you yourself sold for $3.1 million a few years ago.
Take a look:
https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?date=all&q=whiskey,whisky,%2Fm%2F012y1_
That’s Google comparing the online interest in the terms “whiskey” and “whisky” from 2004 to 2017. Over the course of 13+ years, the “whiskey” spelling has always slightly OUTPERFORMED the “whisky” spelling. Moreover, interest in the term hasn’t declined since your $3.1 million sale. On the contrary, there has been a notable, steady increase, according to Google’s statistics.
So I honestly don’t understand the rationale in appraising Whiskey.com at 1/10th the value of Whisky.com. Domain market values haven’t gone down. Same word. More popular spelling. And interest in the term is on the increase. What am I missing?
Auction outcomes are 1 thing. But market value is another.
In this case IMHO pricing depends much more on product, quality differences than on Google trends stats.
Single malt whisky is very different from Bourbon whiskey …
That said, I agree that 1/10 would be a too low appraisal, if we refer to retail pricing, while wholesale is a different story.
Correct version: “Single malt Scotch whisky is very different from Bourbon whiskey …”
Joseph, because the end user that I sold whisky.com said he would not pay more than $300k for whiskEy.com. Without sounding like a whisky snob, whisky has a huge fan base and there is also large following engaging in investment whisky. This is not the case with a much cheaper spirit like whiskEy which is more of a bourbon. Some single malt scotch whisky bottles can fetch in the 6 figures. As an example, I started buying Macallan Cask Strength when it was selling for $80 a bottle, a couple years ago knowing that it would be discontinued. You would be lucky to find one now at $200 and that price will increase. I offered $200,000 for whiskEy.com at the 2010 TRAFFIC auction in NYC but was outbid. I would not have spent more than that.
“I offered $200,000 for whiskEy.com at the 2010 TRAFFIC auction in NYC but was outbid.”
That confirms me that we both think its fair retail (end user) value is more than 300k :), don’t think you purchase it for 200k to resell it only for 300k ;).
“whisky has a huge fan base and there is also large following engaging in investment whisky. This is not the case with a much cheaper spirit like whiskEy which is more of a bourbon.”
Exactly, that’s the point.
@Michael Castello,
As a tea totaler, I’ll refrain from debating the merits of whiskeys and whiskies.
Though, as a language nerd, I do like the fact that the plural of “whiskeys” contains the singular “whiskey” – something not true of “whiskies” and “whisky”. Can’t help seeing blue “skies” in there.
Naturally, I was curious about the differences between “whisky” and “whiskey”. Found an interesting article:
http://www.thekitchn.com/whiskey-vs-whisky-whats-the-di-100476
It describes how the New York Times editorial policy had been (until very recently) to treat the 2 words as interchangeable. After a recent change, “while American-produced varieties such as bourbon, rye, and Tennessee – as well as the Irish stuff – kept their previous NYTimes-styled ‘whiskey’ spelling, the stuff from Scotland, Canada, and Japan now would be referred to as ‘whisky.'”
So it sounds like it’s mainly a question of origin by region. I suppose we could differentiate between Humor and Humour too, based on comedy style in the USA versus the UK. Certainly, there are regional differences beyond spelling.
JosEph and AndrEa. You should try some of the good stuff sometime, there is a huge difference. If you are ever asked if your whisky is peaty, you had better know the difference. It could make the difference in you closing that big deal. ?
https://www.whisky.com/information/knowledge/tasting/flavour/peat-and-its-significance-in-whisky.html
A further point; I think WhiskEy.com could sell for much more than $300k. But, I don’t believe its American spelling in a European auction will get the bigger numbers because 1) its an auction and
2) the market is still sluggish. The seller might be wiser to wait a few months.
http://clubwhisky.com/history.html
Basing the value of a domain on personal taste is a bit strange dont you think? I prefer drinking Japanese Single Malts, but that doesn’t mean that I’d value a domain like Whiskey.com differently than Whisky.com.
I get your bias though. You brokered Whisky.com so back in 2014 had to form a story around why your buyer shouldn’t buy the alternative.
In the end, you value domains based on multiple variables including the commercial potential of a name.
When consumers and bars (yes, the masses that actually buy Whiskey) use more often Whiskey rather than Whisky when they refer to their beverage of choice then that tells you enough.
A simple google search indicates that more people search for Whiskey when they’re looking for an online shop to buy Whiskey than Whisky.
Also FYI the seller has already entertained seven-figure offers on the name from very reputable end-users. I don’t think it will take long until this name will move to a very serious party that will utilize it and make back the investment easily.
Our auctions are a bit different that what you’re used to. We have an end-user friendly platform where we serve international clients.
Finally, when Whisky.com sells for $3.1M in 2014 then in 2017 Whiskey.com should be able to sell for $4M. Domain prices haven’t decreased, they increased and will continue to increase.
My 2 cents. Our seller has set a good and realistic reserve. I still stand firmly behind our valuation and am looking forward to see the bids coming in on this one!
Take care,
Reza
“You should try some of the good stuff sometime, there is a huge difference.”
Hi Michael, I know that, that’s why I agreed with you, see what I wrote above. 🙂
There are actually some very good bourbon and whiskey on the market. I drink them both. My preference is whisky but I am not evaluating the domain name based on that. I do know the markets of both the domain name and the spirit.
I hope you get 6 million for your domain name but in order for me to have valuated whisky.com, between $3 to 6 million, I needed to know both markets and who the end user would most likely be.
People that spend that kind of money know exactly why they are doing so. They preform their due diligence and so should you. Our industry needs factual valuations and sales successes in order to gain respect in other markets.
I did not “form a story”, I documented it and suggest you read it and learn something that might help you in your future endeavours.
http://www.dnjournal.com/cover/2014/february.htm
@Andrea Paladini,
By the way, the price estimate isn’t a reserve price. I’ll bet that’s a common misunderstanding for customers. So I’m recommending a change to clarify things.
Indeed @Konstantinos the price estimate is a range we set. It isn’t a reserve range.
“Basing the value of a domain on personal taste is a bit strange dont you think?”
We are not basing our valuation on our personal tastes, but on the fact that Scotch Single Malt Whisky and cheap Bourbon whiskey are totally different product, also quality-wise, Michael explained it well above.
I guess you don’t know enough about how the underlying whisky market works, while I’ve been covering beverage & spirits companies for many years as equity analyst.
Talking without knowing facts is just a nonsense.
I see I’m not the only one who thought 3.5/4.0 mln EUR was a Reserve Price, just another example here: http://domaingang.com/domain-news/whiskey-com-pours-itself-a-domain-auction-spot/
That said, IMHO it won’t sell at auction even if reserve is 3 mln EUR.
And, as I said above, auctions are not the right way to sell a name like this, negotiations with end users bring way better results.
“Also FYI the seller has already entertained seven-figure offers on the name from very reputable end-users.”
FYI I know the seller and which kind of offers he has received in the past … but maybe you think you are talking to clueless people, big mistake … 🙂
I see from you a lack of knowledge about the underlying whisky market, which makes your marketing stunt a bit ridiculous when you talk to knowledgeable people, I guess that won’t help your auction platform.
Good luck.
Hey Andrea,
You can have a different opinion and that’s perfectly fine. You’ve read mine about the name and clearly I’m more optimistic about the name. I wish the seller the best outcome and will dedicate our resources to get him the price that he and the domain name deserve.
All the best,
Reza
Andrea. You are coming across as a pompous ass. You will find that a better attitude will help when talking to others.
That includes me! And I am actually used to auctions outside domains. Domain auctions 99% of the time display the reserve range. Also non-domain auctions usually start at the lower end of the estimate. In short, yes please recommend the change.
I get that. Can be confusing. We can’t share the exact reserve though but all I can say is that the reserve is under the 3.5M number.
@Kesta
Insulting other people you don’t know says it all about you.
Learn good manners before judging others.
Enjoying the informative comments here! When I allowed myself a treat, it would be one shot of single malt whiskey, with one cube, to savor slowly. But I quit drinking when I moved to California.
Congrats to Reza and the new owner, Epik, for brokering CryptoBank for six figures, and representing whiskey.com at auction at Undeveloped.com.
Question: Regards Article 11.5 of the Terms:
11.5 The Provider grants Undeveloped B.V. the exclusive right and authority to offer all domain names submitted by the Provider to Undeveloped B.V. for inclusion at the Auction and brokerage. This exclusive right shall be expanded for 30 days after the end of an unsuccessful Auction.
is the fact that whiskey.com is offered for sale on Sedo not a violation of the terms? The Provider should delist from Sedo for the duration of your contract, imo.
Wow Andrea, how come you’re so invested in a domain name that you don’t own and want to see it tank so badly and it shows. I agree with Kesta’s comment above about you. Also in your appraisal, you and Michael are basing it on how whisky is a premium product vs “the not so premium” Whiskey. Even if that is true and I’m not an expert, maybe the market size of the “not so premium” brand is bigger and would make up the difference and more in quantity. A bigger size of the market as was shown in the Google Trends would make it actually more valuable. Try and have some respect while you express your opinion. which is just an opinion and I personally am not convenced that it holds water.
As I thought, Whiskey.com didn’t sell …
The rest is just hot air … 😀
Good luck!
I don’t think that it was put there to sell at the auction…