Clek believes that the nearly $10 million purchase price for FUND.COM represents the highest price ever paid for an Internet domain. The purchase price tops what the Guinness World Records books report as the highest previous price, the memorable BUSINESS.COM purchase. Ex-Disney executive, Jake Winebaum of eCompanies Ventures, acquired BUSINESS.COM for $7.5 million in 1999, which created some public media controversy at that time for the seemingly high price. However, in July 2007 BUSINESS.COM was sold to yellow pages publisher, RH Donnelly, for $345 million, 47 times the purchase price of the domain.
Business and Wall Street investors continue to assign higher values to internet domains. According to MSNBC, the domain CREDITCARDS.COM was acquired for $2.75 million all-cash and SEC filings reveal that the $20 billion hedge fund, American Capital Strategies, and Austin Ventures invested $135 million in CREDITCARDS.COM. Regarding the CREDITCARDS.COM sale, MSNBC quoted ClickSuccess CEO Dan Smith, "It's like prime real estate, there's only so much of this real estate to go around. I feel like we bought a slice of Park Avenue."
About Clek Media:
Clek Media Inc. ("Clek") is a digital media consulting firm dedicated to enhancing the value and financial returns of its clients. Clek specializes in helping companies develop intellectual property in the digital space. Clek consultants work with top management to find new and better ways to make money in this rapidly growing area.
"Clek" is a trademark of Clek Media Inc.
Addendum
Below are the reported top 20 domain names sales before the sale of FUND.COM, or top bids that did not meet the minimum required reserve price, according to DN Journal:
(Note to editors: Some reports list the sale of SEX.COM in 1999 for $12 million as the highest-priced domain sale; however, that sale did not close. The original registrant sold the domain to another buyer, Escom, LLC, in 2006, but the price for this second contract was never reported.)
Porn.com 9,500,000 2007 Business.com 7,500,000 1999 Diamond.com 7,500,000 2006 Beer.com 7,000,000 2007 Asseenontv.com 5,100,000 2000 Seo.com 5,000,000 2007 Auction.com 4,500,000 Reserve 2007 Dermatology.com 4,500,000 Reserve 2007 HorseRacing.com 4,500,000 Reserve 2007 Slots.com 4,500,000 Reserve 2007 PuertoRico.com 3,500,000 Reserve 2007 Shop.com 3,500,000 Altavista.com 3,300,000 2002 Creditcheck.com 3,000,000 2007 Scotland.com 3,000,000 Reserve 2007 Student.com 3,000,000 Reserve 2007 Vodka.com 3,000,000 2006 Wine.com 2,900,000 1999 CreditCards.com 2,750,000 2004 PressReleases.com 2,500,000 Reserve 2007
Contact: Vicki Smith Clek Media Inc. (214) 717-5314
