Comments on: NameJet.com Announces New DeadBeat Bidder & Re-Auction Policy: Is It Enough?

By: auctions

auctions — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 10:29:09 +0000

It disturbs me greatly that so many good names are bid on by shill bidders, in an attempt to destroy the process for the good buyers in the auctions. I think this is incredibly important and some kind of bidder checks have long been overdue. Lately I have noticed more and more bidders using randomly generated names – a sure sign of bad behavior. It will be nice to see those losers hit the pavement.

By: MHB

MHB — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 02:49:12 +0000

Steve M

I agree with you.

I urged them to adopt a fee of $100 or 5% of the defaulting bidding price, whichever is higher, but they rejected that.

By: Steve M

Steve M — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:55:25 +0000

So overall a good move; though the reauction methodology remains problematic for various bidders.

However, this part of their TOS: “… the amount of which shall be determined by NameJet. ” would prove to be not legally enforceable should anyone challenge it in court.

You can’t bind someone to pay whatever you unilaterally decide should be their penalty … after they’ve committed the “infraction.”

By: MHB

MHB — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:18:46 +0000

You always have the choice to opt out of the re-auction, however if you were willing to pay $3K for a domain, then you still should be willing to pay it a week later.

The old system, started the same way, with the highest bid, without regard to the defaulting bidder, the only difference is that the re-auciton was public opened to a ton of new bidders

By: D

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:14:45 +0000

^No it’s NOT fair because if I was the 2nd highest bidder everyone KNOWS what my proxybid is and will bump me to the max

By: MHB

MHB — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:05:11 +0000

There are several ways the re-auction process could work.

And none of them would make everyone happy.

I think the new approach which is to restart the auction with the participants from the orginal auction starting with the highest bid without regard to the defaulting bidders, bids is a fair approach and an improvement over what we have had up to now.

By: D

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:56:43 +0000

^That’s nonsense – for some really great domain I would do another account and drvien it to crazy hight immediately after auciton starts, so nobody would bid.
Then it would be
1. Fake account $200K
2. My honest account $199K
3. Some bidder $1K
Say the domain has value $20K but I would get it for $1100 with your “system”

By: Tony

Tony — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:42:10 +0000

I think they should do it the Godaddy way instead of re-auctions which I believe MHB advocated before also.

Take out all bids from the non-payor and the next highest bidder should be given a chance to buy the domain. If that person fails to pay, then re-auction.

What does Godaddy do when the next highest bidder doesn’t want to pay? Offer the name to the next to the next at their winning bid?

By: Domain Investor

Domain Investor — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:17:17 +0000

Why would they want to re-start at $ 69.??
They make as much or more re-starting from the second place bid.

As it has been mentioned many times, if the defaulting bidder wasn’t in the auction where would the price end?

I agree. It should re-start at $ 69.
I have noticed a number of times where they were forced to re-start at $ 69. But, only the “pro’s” know how to continously make Namejet lower the bids.

Otherwise, they give you the party line – “if you want your bid removed, you will be totally removed from bidding”.

By: D

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:09:32 +0000

There is one more thing that disturbs me: in the reauction they use my highest bid without asking. They should start again from 69 UNLESS someone opt-in into program “always use my highest bid in re-auction”.