There are still Gentlemen in the Domain Industry

A recent incident that quietly unfolded on the popular domain forum, DNForum.com involved the following protagonists:

  • A seller eager to let go of a premium domain for a low price
  • A buyer #1 who recognizes good deals
  • A buyer #2 who silently bought the domain

I cannot reveal all the names, but the buyer #1 is me. The seller listed a premium, aged dot com for sale at a surprisingly low price. For a pre-2000 domain, it was a non-brainer.

Following the seller’s instructions, I posted ‘Sold’ in the thread and waited for a private message instructing about payment.

The next day I received a message from the seller, that he had sold the domain to a buyer who messaged him privately before I did. He also mentioned the name of the buyer.

I’m very particular about the rules of the game and I don’t break them. Since I was the first one to post ‘Sold’ as instructed, I had full intention to publicly denounce the seller’s lack of following his own rules.

However, I decided to contact the new owner first. He responded that the domain was indeed in his possession, as he had paid for it already.

What came next was clearly a surprise for me.

The buyer told me that if I wanted the domain for the same price plus the PayPal fees, I could have it. He graciously offered this clearly undervalued domain name without asking questions, simply because he felt that I wanted it more.

I jumped on the opportunity and agreed to buy it from him; in the process I paid an extra 25% for the purchase to show my gratitude.

The buyer’s gesture was extremely noble and characteristic of a gentleman. I appreciate people who display a lack of selfishness and I often strive to act the same way. In a world of faceless electronic communication, such acts are the exceptions to the rule.

Thank you, Vincent; you’re one true Gentleman.

Comments

  1. what was the blasted domain ??

  2. Steve – You remind me of people that read the classics of literature, and complain about the lack of illustrations 🙂

  3. It’s refreshing that they did the right thing. Very cool of you to offer more than what they spent on the name.

  4. He didn’t have to do it. It wasn’t the right or wrong thing to do. It was a classy act. Now, what the heck is the domain name? 🙂

  5. Poor Uncle – I have no complaints about Vincent. My beef was with the seller. But Vincent really showed me that gentlemen exist still.

  6. Nice story, happy endings are great…and the name of the no brainer purchase was?

  7. If only everyone in the industry was as classy! Always encouraging to hear when someone shines.

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