DomainTools Blog

The Villas.com Portfolio is one of the most complete domain portfolios that I have seen. It includes not only Domain Names but Registered Trademarks as well. As new TLDs get released these trademarks have been used to acquire the rights in future “Villas” brand in TLDs. Holding on to generic terms in multiple TLDs is virtual impossible. However Steve has managed to just that. He originally started the brand for his Villas magazine. The offline publication didn’t last long with the Invention of the Internet. Steve never got into the third party booking business online but this brand is begging for it.

The most valuable domain of them all is Villas.com. The second most valuable domain in the collection I personally think is Villas.eu. Europe has thousands of Villas and is the central place people think about when they discuss renting a Villa. There are plenty of Villas in Spain and of course Steve got Villas.es too. German’s love to go on Holiday and they also love dotInfo, so there is the domain Villas.info too.

With 13 trademarks centered on the classic generic word VILLAS this is a portfolio that allows the new owner plenty of room to grow the brand as new TLDs come on line. Villas.asia comes to mind. Later this year the trademark owner of Villas can apply before anyone else to own the domain. Trademark owners have first right of refusal on new TLDs.

This portfolio is being sold at a value based on branding potential, longevity in the marketplace and trademarks. The entire portfolio of domains, together with trademarks, presents a formidable barrier to entry. The key generic word VILLAS lends itself seamlessly to at least two of the Internet’s most lucrative and natural global markets: Real Estate and Travel. VILLAS is recognizable and has instant cognition in all western languages and cultures, as well as Hebraic, Asian, Slavic and Arabic cultures, without translation. Moreover, the word VILLAS has permeated everyday lexicon, in all international cultures, to mean exactly what it is with no marketing hype and expense needed to imbed the name into consumers’ top-of-mind cognition. It has meaning to the bargain hunter and luxury consumer alike. In short, VILLAS has natural, direct, low cost branding perfection and is a marketer’s dream generic.

VILLAS is instantly significant in the primary market of Travel — both Domestic and International — and as a revenue hook for the ancillary markets of: Vacation Rentals for consumers, owners and booking agents; Hotels and Resorts; Travel Agents; Air Bookings; Car Rental; Currency Exchange Services; Local Merchants and Service Providers; Tour Guides; Specialist/Exotic/High End Travel & Services; Bargain/Discount Travel Packages; “Last Minute” Bookers; etc.

VILLAS is instantly significant in the primary market of Real Estate & Property — both Domestic and International — and as a revenue hook for the ancillary markets of: Home Loans & Refinance; Insurance; Financial Services; VIP & Concierge Services; Currency Exchange Services; Decoration & Interior Design; Architects; Domestic and International Agents; Property Finders; Appraisals; Kitchens & Bathrooms; Home Entertainment and other Domestic Electronics; Landscaping and Swimming Pools; etc.

TRADEMARKS

All of the world’s goods and services are, for trademark purposes, categorized into 45 different segments, called “Classes”. Whereas anyone can assert that they have a “trademark” for a product, by simply using the ™ symbol in conjunction with a brand, logo, word phrase, etc., this right can be defeated quite easily, even if used for a long period of time. However, the Registered Trademark, denoted ®, grants absolute rights and protection to its owner, even defeating a trademark, ™, for the same or similar brand, logo, word phrase, etc.

Obtaining a Registered Trademark, ®, is a rigorous process of examination, public review and compliance with international standards. It is expensive and can take years to obtain, but it wields great power for its owner. For this reason, for example, in any Trademark Sunrise period for new gTLDs and ccTLDs a Registered Trademark is required. In any UDRP domain challenge, and other civil claims, a Registered Trademark ® will always prevail over a trademark ™. Moreover, the Seller has prevailed in one WIPO challenge, three Sunrise applications for the generic domain name “VILLAS”, and in the past month has prevailed in a precedent-setting trademark dispute over infringement by a large online gambling concern, based on the power of the 13 Registered Trademarks listed below (see also Annex 2):

Spanish Registered Trademark Nº 1.965.734 issued in 1995 for the “Word with Graphic” representation of “Villas &…” the ampersand and three dots are considered a “graphic”, in the Nice Class 16 pertaining, generally, to: printed matter including books and magazines, cardboard and paper products, photographs, etc. The trademark is for:

VILLAS&…®

A further four Spanish Registered Trademarks, 2.481.940 through 2.481.943, issued in 2002 to amplify the above original “Word with Graphic” trademark by including Class 36: Insurance; financial affairs; monetary affairs; real estate affairs; Class 38: All forms of telecommunications, including the internet; Class 39: Travel arrangement, transport, packaging and storage of goods; and Class 41: Entertainment, education, providing of training, sporting and cultural activities.

A further five Spanish Registered Trademarks, 2.481.944 through 2.481.948, issued in 2002 to amplify the figurative marks noted above with the “Textual” or actual word phrase VILLAS&… in Classes 16, 36, 38, 39 and 41, already described above.

VILLAS&…®

A further Spanish Registered Trademark, 2.522.493, issued in 2003 for the “Textual” or actual word phrase: VILLASDOTCOM VILLAS.COM, in Classes 16, 36, 38, 39 and 41, already described above, and in the additional Class 35: Advertising, business management, business administration and office functions.

VILLASDOTCOM VILLAS.COM®

A further Spanish Registered Trademark, 2.597.146, issued in 2004, for VILLAS.EU, in Classes 16, 36 and 38, described above, which is:

VILLAS.EU®

A further European Community Registered Trademark (CTM), 772020, issued in 1999, for the Villas &… “Word with Graphic” or “figurative mark”, in Classes 16, 36 and 38, already mentioned above. This gives protection in all 26 member-states of the European Community (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Holland, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom).

VILLAS&…®

The above 13 trademarks and the bulk of the domain portfolio were originally obtained to secure and protect the brand of the Seller’s magazine of the same name, Villas &… This magazine was dedicated to high-end property, décor and lifestyle on the Mediterranean coasts, and was published continuously from 1995 until 2004. The magazine is registered in the National Libraries of Spain and the United Kingdom as well as the Registry of Periodicals in Spain. It was distributed on sale throughout Europe, and had subscribers all over the world. By default, as the Seller is divesting of all protecting Intellectual Property and domains, the “title” and the exclusive right to commence publication again to the magazine Villas &… is included in the portfolio.

Based on what is called, in trademark parlance, “priority”, dating back to 1995, and with 13 prior Registered Trademarks, one could further amplify these trademarks into other international jurisdictions with little or no effort aside from the filing procedures.

Although originally intended to protect a magazine title, the Seller foresaw many other future applications for branding and hence trademarked into many other commercial functions. That is, the future owner of these marks can apply the branding not only to the Internet but also into what are some of the most lucrative global industrial sectors, e.g., Real Estate, Travel, Entertainment, Insurance and Financial Affairs, to name but a few.

Top Level: Brand “Super Villas” (German):
VILLAS.COM UBERVILLAS.COM
VILLAS.EU UBERVILLAS.DE
VILLAS.MOBI UBER-VILLAS.COM
VILLAS.INFO UBER-VILLAS.DE
VILLAS.PRO UBER-VILLEN.COM
VILLAS.IN UBER-VILLEN.DE
VILLAS.ES
VILLAS.EU.COM Travel and/or Real Estate:
VILLAS.BZ VILLASONLINE.NET
VILLAS.FM VILLASONLINE.ORG
VILLA.FM VILLASONLINE.INFO
VILLASONLINE.BIZ

IP Protection and/or Brand: VILLASONLINE.CC
VILLASDOTCOM.COM VILLAS-ONLINE.COM
VILLASDOTCOM.NET VILLAS-ONLINE.ORG
VILLASDOTCOM.ORG VILLAS-ONLINE.INFO
VILLASDOTCOM.INFO VILLAS-ONLINE.BIZ
VILLASDOTCOM.BIZ VILLAS-ONLINE.CC
VILLASDOT.COM VILLASOFTHEWORLD.NET
VILLASDOT.NET VILLASOFTHEWORLD.ORG
VILLASDOT.ORG VILLASOFTHEWORLD.INFO
VILLASDOT.INFO VILLASOFTHEWORLD.BIZ
VILLASDOT.BIZ VILLAS-OF-THE-WORLD.COM
VILLASEU.COM VILLAS-OF-THE-WORLD.NET
VILLASEU.NET VILLAS-OF-THE-WORLD.ORG
VILLASEU.ORG VILLAS-OF-THE-WORLD.INFO
VILLASEU.INFO VILLAS-OF-THE-WORLD.BIZ
VILLASEU.BIZ VILLASRICHE.COM
VILLAS-EU.COM VILLASSITE.COM
VILLAS-EU.NET VILLASTV.COM
VILLAS-EU.INFO VILLASTV.EU
VILLAS-EU.BIZ

Interior Design & Home:
Travel & Holiday: VILLASAIRCONDITIONING.COM
VILLASDESTINATIONS.COM VILLASART.COM
VILLASDESTINATIONS.CO.UK VILLASBATHROOMS.COM
VILLASHOLIDAYS.CO.UK VILLASBEDROOMS.COM
VILLASRENTAL.CO.UK VILLASDECORATIONS.COM
VILLASRENTALS.US VILLASDESIGNS.COM
VILLASFORRENT.BIZ VILLASFURNISHINGS.COM
VILLASFORRENT.INFO VILLASFURNITURE.COM
RENTALVILLAS.US VILLASHOMECINEMA.COM
FORVILLAS.COM VILLASHOMETHEATRE.COM
GOTOVILLAS.COM VILLASHOMETHEATRES.COM
SEARCHVILLAS.COM VILLASKITCHENS.COM
VILLASAUTORENTAL.COM VILLASMEDIAROOMS.COM
VILLASCARHIRE.COM
VILLASCARRENTAL.COM

Real Estate: Magazine:
LUXURY-VILLAS.BIZ VILLASMAGAZINE.COM
LUXURY-VILLAS.INFO VILLASMAGAZINE.NET
LUXURY-VILLAS.ORG VILLASMAGAZINE.ORG
VILLASFORSALE.INFO VILLASMAGAZINE.INFO
VILLASLOANS.COM VILLASMAGAZINE.BIZ
VILLASFORLEASE.COM VILLASMAGAZINE.US
VILLASFORLEASE.INFO VILLASMAGAZINE.CC

VILLAS-MAGAZINE.COM
VILLAS-MAGAZINE.NET
VILLAMAGAZINE.INFO
VILLA-MAGAZINE.BIZ

Originally IP, now Branding:
EURO-VILLAS.NET VILLAS-MAGAZINE.ORG
EURO-VILLAS.ORG VILLAS-MAGAZINE.INFO
EURO-VILLAS.INFO VILLAS-MAGAZINE.BIZ
EURO-VILLAS.BIZ VILLAS-MAGAZINE.US
EURO-VILLAS.US VILLAS-MAGAZINE.CC
EURO-VILLAS.TV
EURO-VILLAS.BZ VILLAMAGAZINE.COM
EURO-VILLAS.CC VILLAMAGAZINE.NET
EURO-VILLAS.WS VILLAMAGAZINE.ORG

VILLAS-AND.COM VILLAMAGAZINE.BIZ
VILLAS-AND.NET VILLA-MAGAZINE.COM
VILLAS-AND.ORG VILLA-MAGAZINE.NET
VILLAS-AND.INFO VILLA-MAGAZINE.ORG
VILLAS-AND.BIZ VILLA-MAGAZINE.INFO

Gambling:
VILLASCASINO.COM
VILLASCASINO.EU

Trademark Country Nº NICE Class Issue Date Renew Date
VILLAS (plus Graphic) Spain 1.965.734 16 06.11.1995 05.11.2015
Villas &… (figurative) EU 772020 16,36,38 24.08.1999 23.08.2009
Villas &… (Figurative) Spain 2.481.940 36 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Figurative) Spain 2.481.941 38 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Figurative) Spain 2.481.942 39 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Figurative) Spain 2.481.943 41 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Textual) Spain 2.481.944 16 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Textual) Spain 2.481.945 36 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Textual) Spain 2.481.946 38 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Textual) Spain 2.481.947 39 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
Villas &… (Textual) Spain 2.481.948 41 20.11.2002 19.11.2012
VILLAS.COM Spain 2.522.493 16,35,36,38,39,41 07.07.2003 06.07.2013
VILLASDOTCOM Spain 2.522.493 16,35,36,38,39,41 07.07.2003 06.07.2013
VILLAS.EU Spain M2597146 16,36,38 16.11.2004 15.11.2014

To bid on this portfolio of domains and the trademarks, go to DomainTools Live auction for more information.

If there was a new company that wanted to compete with evite.com then Event.com would be the perfect name to do it with. Any event management or online invitation service would have plenty of uses for the domain. This reserve is set nice and low.

This is a killer domain name. A quick search on Google for Event Management yields thousands of companies competing in this Event Planning space. It is hard enough to remember all the companies that compete in this space. A brand like Event.com would stand out and allow for the most valuable marketing of them all, viral word of month marketing. If customers can’t remember a brand it is hard to get that viral marketing. An amazing 255,840 domains have used the word Event in their domain name. To compete with all those companies is VERY hard for a new start up. So a killer name is the best way to do it.

Event.com is also the second oldest domain in the auction behind Suspects.com. Both domains were registered in December of 1993.

To bid on the domain, go to DomainTools Live auction for more information.

One of the best domains in my opinion in the upcoming auction is Autobiography.com. For this reserve price it would be a down right steal. The book business is huge online and Amazon has proven it. To own this domain name forever at a renewal cost of $7 per year is going to seem down right silly to the accountant that is auditing the books a decade from now.

For a book publisher that specializes in selling Autobiographies it would be fantastic to start a new division with the name of that division, “Autobiography.com” on the spine of the book of every autobiography they sell. There are just so many uses for the domain, it has that built in marketing that very few generic domain names have on a level like this one.

Will Amazon or BN.com be bidding? BN.com has shown they understand the Internet by buying a two character domain, so I have a feeling they will be looking at this domain. However there are many publishing houses that may come for this one as well.

To bid on the domain, go to DomainTools Live auction for more information.

What do people search for when they want to buy Kids Toys on the Internet? What else but the Internet Keywords, “Kids Toys”. The overture search score of 8,521 is awesome of this domain. People are searching directly for this product and they are easy to ship. For $250,000 that would only buy a few months of advertising by one of the big companies in the toy industry. We are approaching several major toy retailers to let them know about the domain.

Kids Toys are another Billion dollar industry. eToys went down in flames, but before it did it was valued at $100 Million. Nearly all the eToys assets were acquired by KB Toys in two separate bankruptcy auctions, then later sold to D.E. Shaw, a New York based hedge fund.

In 1999, the company was involved in high-profile dispute with Swiss art site etoy.com. EToys attempted to seize the etoy.com domain from etoy on the grounds that it was confusingly similar to its own domain, but it relented after widespread Internet outrage.

The eToys.com website was eventually reopened by eToys Direct Inc., a descendant of Internet startup and KB Toys partner Brainplay.com. It continues to market toys by mail order under the eToys name through both the website and printed catalogs.

The Domain KidsToys.com is a steal at $250,000. To bid on the domain or other domains going to auction please visit DomainTools Live auction for more details. The Live Auction is August 15th in Seattle Washington and we are also accepting bids online as well.

REDMOND, Wash., Mar. 14, 2000 — Microsoft today announced that it will integrate RealNames’ Internet Keyword solution — a common naming system that gives users direct and intuitive navigation using simple, everyday words — into MSN Search and Internet Explorer. The company also announced that it is taking an equity stake of approximately 20 percent in RealNames. To find out what this announcement means for the two companies — and how the Internet Keyword solution fits into Microsoft’s Everyday Web vision

That was an announcement 7 years and a $130 Million dollars ago. The domain is going up for auction this month at the DomainTools Live auction for $250,000. The built-in press around this name is huge and the domain is awesome for a new brand. Two months ago Sedo bought GreatDomains.com for a reported $2 Million dollars and that failed company had been sold to Verisign for $50 Million in 2000.

RealNames was a company founded in 1997 by Keith Teare. Its goal was to create a multilingual keyword-based naming system for the Internet that would translate keywords typed into the address bar of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer web browser to Uniform Resource Identifiers, based on the existing Domain Name System, that would access the page registered by the owner of the RealNames keyword.

In effect, to users of Internet Explorer, RealNames became a domain registry which was capable of registering names that worked without needing to belong to a top level domain such as “.com” or “.net”. RealNames and its backers expected this to be a lucrative source of income, and it raised more than $130m of funding for its venture.

RealNames was dependent on maintaining its association with Microsoft that enabled the RealNames service on Microsoft’s web browser. RealNames shut down operations in 2002 following a decision by Microsoft to redirect the 1 billion page views per calendar quarter that RealNames were resolving from the browser address bar into the MSN search engine.

Some of you have noticed that we are selling a domain name called Junk Yard Dog.com in our Live Auction. The domain by itself is not worth much however it is attached to a killer company that makes a lot of revenue. This is not only a domain name but an entire company. The salvage and junk yard business is a huge business online and Junk Yard Dogs is leading the way. In fact it is listed number one on Google for the term “Junkyard” or “Salvage Yard”. So in terms that a domainer can understand, this is basically like buying Junkyard.com and SalvageYards.com combined; plus all the content; plus established revenue streams.

Here is a prepared statement from the owner:

Junk Yard Dog® has had steady growth over the last 8 plus years, and it has room to grow. JYD has maintained a membership of around 100 members for years and the cost of membership has risen from $45 / Month to $60 to $100 to $200 and now $300. Also, with the last increase, the price for brokers has gone to $500 / month. Old members were grandfathered in on the last increase. Some members (according to what they tell me) sell upwards of $40K per month using JYD’s services. A realistic value for this service could be in the $1000 / month range, as members receive between 25000 and 30000 requests for parts quotes per month.

Although to many members $1000 per month is too extreme, you must remember JYD is highly profitable with only 100 members and there are reportedly around 30,000 salvage yards in the US.

Another huge asset of JYD is its traffic. One major aftermarket auto part site is spending approximately 80 cents per visitor. With visitor numbers around 4000 per day, that makes potential traffic value at over one million dollars per year.

JYD also has its own searchable database of salvage yards including over 5000 salvage yards. This search feature allows entries to have priority of 0 to 10. A few of JYD’s members pay an additional $50 to $100 per month for higher placement in the results. This is a highly under used revenue stream considering there are between 50,000 and 70,000 searches per month. This search also has Google Adsense.

JYD has one site wide advertiser paying $1500 to $2000 per month that has been advertising since September. Another advertiser pays $800 per month to advertise on the home page and to have a banner in rotation. This is all expandable and can increase revenue substantially.

It takes years of hard work to organically rank websites in search engines; JunkYardDog.com has done exactly that, they rank number one for these keywords at Google (just to name a few):

• Junkyard Search
• Salvage Yards
• Junkyard
• Junk Yard
• Salvage Car Parts
• Used Auto Parts Dealers
• Looking For Car Parts

This is a turn-key business that requires little work to administrate. There are no full-time employees of the company and most everything is automated. Bobby Newell is selling his company so that he can look after & grow another business. The website makes about $20,000 a month right now so this is a great asset to own. For more information on the how the website works and full financials please use the login information below:

Username: custone
Password: cust1815
http://www.jydonline.com/auction/

If you have any further questions regarding the company please call Bobby directly at +1-800-844-9440.

To Bid on this Company/Website please attend the DomainTools Live Auction. It will take place August 15th in Seattle during the last day of the Domain Roundtable. Bidders can also bid online. Please stay tuned for information on how to bid remotely.

We are still working hard on the list of domains that are going to auction but I wanted to give everyone a preview of what is on the top of the list right now. So without further ado here is a link to the Top 200 List:

http://www.domaintools.com/live-auction/browse-domains.html

The list is changing and names are coming and going from the list right now, so please don’t panic if your domain is on the list today and gone tomorrow. It may still be in the top 450. This is only the top 200 of 450. The list will grow over the next two weeks to show the full 450 domains. If you are in the top 200 or plan to be in the top 450, please add some quick notes to the domain’s Note Field to let people know more about your domain.

Please note, we have added a Phone Number field in the control panel where you add names to the auction. Please update your phone number and allow us to call you if we have questions about your domain(s).

The list will be frozen and locked August 6th. No further changes will take place on that date.

It seems to be raining Generic Domain Names over at our Live Domain Auction. Have you ever visited eHow.com? Why does such a good website have such a bad name? Simple answer – the guys over at How.com would not sell them their Generic Domain. This all changes August 15th. For $500K anyone can bid the reserve price of what is arguable the best “How” domain name in the world. A domain like this only gets sold once. Once it is bundled inside of a huge media company it is off the market permanently.
Prepare to be shocked and awed at the bidding in the room for this one. This is easily a $2,000,000 domain. Three simple letters that get typed into millions of web browsers every month. If a consumer saw this domain attached to a SERP result you can bet it would increase the percentage of people that would click through to the website.

To attend the live auction and or bid on the domain more information can be found at www.domainroundtable.com. It is also possible to bid online as well.

I love the domain SendMoney.com. Can it get any more clear then this? The application of sending money is universal. The demand is constant. Children and and relatives request this all the time from distant places. What is the best way to Send Money? Online of course. What better resource than SendMoney.com?

SendMoney.com is looking for a new owner. For a fraction of the cost of what is should be worth, you too can own the domain. The reserve is set at $400K. This is set to sell and will be going to a happy new owner soon.

To Attend the live auction and bid on the domain more information can be found at www.domainroundtable.com. It is also possible to bid online as well.

We have selected our second high profile domain for the upcoming Live Auction. The quality of the Invention.com name is outstanding when you look at the applications it can be used for. Invention.com will be a one time cost for the new owner and renewal fee is only $10 a year. When you look at how much money the new owner will save compared to spending money on Adwords this is a bargain. We have asked the seller to lower his reserve from a Million to $425K. This is a huge steal if someone buys it at the reserve price.

Patents.com just recently sold for $2 Million dollars. When real estate professionals estimate the value of a house they use comparable sales. The closest sale of one word generic domain names recently that deals in the formation of new intellectual property was Patents.com.

To Attend the auction and bid on the domain more information can be found at www.domainroundtable.com. It is also possible to bid online as well.