Amazon registered cryptocurrency domain names and GoDaddy pays $50 million for domain names

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It's almost the end of the year

I bought a Christmas tree this weekend. My family doesn't usually buy one this early in the season but Shane Cultra, aka Domain Shane, told me his nursery business is experiencing a run on Christmas trees because of some news articles talking about a shortage.

Earlier this year there were rumors of a gas shortage in Austin. Everyone was scared and ran out to buy gas, which caused an actual gas shortage. I know how these things work and I'm not going to be the dad stuck without a Christmas tree. My daughter would never forgive me.

So on Saturday we drove down to the Papa Noel christmas tree lot and found a tree. Some teenager working at the tree lot netted it, tossed it up on the top of my car and tied it down.

"Well, that should do it," he said. Then he added, "I think."

I thought about two things on the drive home from the tree lot. First, I worried about the Christmas tree flying off the roof of my car (it didn't). Second, I thought about how buying a Christmas tree is symbolic of the end of the year.

The end of the year is a time to reflect on the past year and set goals for the one ahead.

How was the domain business in 2017?

I'd sum it up as ho-hum. A lot of companies are treading water and the domain name aftermarket has quieted down after the prior year's Chinese bubble.

At the same time, there hasn't been much capitulation. There aren't many distressed sellers. Perhaps it's because the overall economy continues to do well. Capital is cheap, real estate is booming across much of the United States and the stock market keeps hitting fresh highs.

There are a lot of companies that exist today that have never gone through a recession. It will be interesting to see how they fare when the next one comes.

I don't mean to be all doom-and-gloom, however. I love the domain name industry and the people in it. Domain Name Wire continues to do well and deliver actionable news to people in the industry. (I couldn't do that without the generous support of my sponsors...drop me a line at andrew (at) domainnamewire.com to inquire.)

Most importantly, I have a lot of fun running DNW. Domain names touch almost every business. For example, last month I interviewed one of Megadeth's founding members about how the thrash metal band created the first website for a music group.

I also get great advice from people in the thick of the domain industry . Thanks, Shane!

OK, now let's review the top stories on DNW from November:

1. An Amazon coin? Amazon.com registers cryptocurrency domain names - My story about Amazon's cryptocurrency domain name registrations caught fire. People love their crypto.

2. Psst…here's what Amazon.com is about to announce at AWS re:Invent - Apparently, people love their Amazon scoops.

3. GoDaddy paid $50 million for two latest domain portfolio acquisitions - The two portfolios were from Donuts and one associated with investor Kevin Ham.

4. GoDaddy files lawsuit to take down Whois spammers - It's probably just a game of whack-a-mole, but GoDaddy is trying to take down some prolific Whois spammers.

5. 15 end user domain name sales - These end user sales columns are some of my most popular.

Podcasts

Subscribe to the Domain Name Wire Podcast on your iPhone or Android device so you never miss an episode. Here are the episodes that aired in October. Listen to them now.

#162 - David Ellefson of Megadeth - what does a thrash metal bassist have to discuss about domain names? Find out in this episode.

#161 - Reviewing this year's predictions - who was right and who was wrong?

#160 - Paul Nicks of GoDaddy - learn how to sell more domains in the aftermarket.

#159 - Can Blockchain upend the domain aftermarket? - At least one company thinks so.