I’m an impulsive domain buyer, and I’ve made that clear in every venue or domain forum that I participate at.
When a great deal is presented, time is often of the essence.
As much as one must seize an opportunity, the associated risk can be costly.
Imagine bidding on, and winning a domain auction or other sale that somehow involves a domain name that isn’t really owned by the seller.
While mistakes do happen, sometimes ulterior motives can lead to the creation of fake sales.
One must spend the extra time required for the complete verification of ownership of, or right to sell, a domain.
Yesterday, a domain auction at Bido seemed too good to be true; the same seller had listed a handful of quality domains with an expedited method. In other words, the auction was ending in a few hours.
I WHOIS’ed the domain and sure enough, it belongs to a major antivirus company, that surely wasn’t going to list a domain with a $28 opening price. At the time, the bids were in the low thousands, with at least two dozen participants.
I contacted Bido and they were quick to respond, citing a verification mistake. They also pulled the auction.
Always verify the ownership of a domain prior to bidding, and when in doubt, engage the services of a reputable escrow service as well.
Good to see that they took it down. Which domain was it?
Jon – It was a “cloud” .com domain. Check out Bido’s twitter, I’d rather not share it here but you have plenty of hints already. 😉
Bido is a kick ass up and coming marketplace… i really like the concept of voting for domains to be allowed in auction. Helps you as a seller see which of your domains really stand out the most, and prevents the buyers from sorting through pages and pages of “premium” trash. What’s that word mean anymore, anyway?
Ohh no just caught a glimpse of your f*cking captcha before i went to press post. Just great. Having flashbacks of counting cats now 🙁 http://www.geeksaresexy.net/2008/04/24/rapidshare-captcha-will-drive-you-crazy/
pops – Bido launched almost 7 years ago. The concept and mechanics of auctioning were way ahead of its time. It changed ownership, and I am not sure who runs it these days, but it’s always refreshing to see they still support and improve on the platform.
This particular captcha isn’t that bad. Check out this older rant: http://acro.net/blog/domains/im-getting-too-old-for-this-the-letter-captcha-rant/