Breaking News: Sedo Auction 3 To Be Re-run In January 2008
BREAKING NEWS: SEDO AUCTION 3 TO BE RE-RUN IN JANUARY 2008
Just in from Sedo
(feel free to rep )
Third .Mobi auction to be rerun on January 23rd, 2008
Hello everyone,
Many of you have been asking about the December .mobi auction that was interrupted due to our server crashing. Per the DotMobi registry's requirements, the December auction results have been declared void. The auction will be rerun on January 23rd, 2008. Please read on below for Sedo's official announcement.
"On December 5, 2007, the third and final .MOBI auction was scheduled to close on Sedo’s domain auction platform. In line with the previous two .MOBI auctions, the available domains garnered significant attention and received many competing bids in the seven days the auction ran. The domains received so much attention in the final moments that Sedo’s auction servers crashed before the completion of the auctions, rendering our system incapable of processing many validly submitted bids, including proxy bids set by user’s using the feature to automatically bid up to a maximum amount, and sending out winner notifications in error.
While Sedo takes steps to ensure the stability and security of our services, the crash that occurred could not have been predicted given traffic spikes more than ten times higher than anticipated by previous high-traffic auctions. Decisions were made with the intention of protecting all parties involved, but as we have learned from investigating the crash more carefully since December 5th, the auction was compromised and as such, DotMobi has exercised its right to declare the auction results void and will conduct a new auction at Sedo.com beginning on January 23rd, 2008. Sedo will be contacting everyone who participated in the auction to inform them of this decision.
Sedo apologizes for any delays responding to user concerns about the close of the auction, but a thorough investigation was necessary to determine what exactly occurred when the servers failed. As the world’s largest marketplace for buying and selling domain names, we take great pride at Sedo in our efforts to ensure the operation and security of our marketplace at all times. While this crash has forced us to reconsider the maximum levels of traffic our site may receive at any given time, we can ensure all of our users that steps are being actively taken to strengthen our protective measures to ensure any auction—whether one domain or special auction event such as .MOBI—run smoothly and close without any of the problems we experienced on December 5th.
Thank you for your understanding and best wishes from Sedo during this holiday season!"
This will be interesting. Now if I were a winner of one of the lower priced sales I d be pissed
__________________
Ache.mobi, Assemble.mobi, Dusk.mobi, Esteem.mobi, Ghetto.mobi, Itch.mobi, Rigs.mobi, Suburbia.mobi, Swamp.mobi, Traditional.mobi, Vibration.mobi, xUS.mobi, and many more one word mobis
Me too, but also relieved whether or not I believed in a conspiracy theory (which I didn't but others did) - Sedo don't seem to be afraid of getting all their internal and external communications examined in court.
prob only fair way of doing it and sure legal side have said best.
got both sides complaining, only one side gonna win, if any, so i think best option.
who's to say a court wouldn't say this anyway? saves legal fees.
roll on, should be fun.
unbelievable to think the mobi auction caused 10 times normal spike! wow!
Agreed, although after an event like that it's probably next to impossible to be fair to everybody and still abide by the management's duty to act in the best interests of its shareholders.
My god... I can't believe I'm going to have to bid for a THIRD time for the same name...!
Yeah this is probably the most fair approach, but I gotta admit I am pretty pissed cuz I got the name I was after for a decent enough price the last time....
Here we go again... what happens if the servers are "compromised" again in Jan?! Perhaps we'll all have to do the auction the old school way in a big room with sheets of paper and hand-signals just to be safe...
This is the proceedure that they would follow to see the metal of the complainents. But having corresponded with some of them this is a fool-hardy strategy on Sedo's and mTLD's side.
Firstly, the statement says that mTLD had the right to declare the auction void, I have yet to see published any document that was given to any person taking part in the auction where it states that mTLD reserves the right to declare the auction void!
Secondly, Sedo and mTLD have now decided basically to say that the published TOS by Sedo are null and void, this means that under the law where 'mutuality' must exist in a contract that all other buyers and sellers can declare an auction run by Sedo as null and void!
Thirdly, Sedo and mTLD have decided to 'smoke' the issue by trying to get the winners of the first auction embroiled with the winners of the 2nd unlawful auction.
Fourthly, the statement is so vague as to the reason of the 'crash' that it implies almost in as vague terms as possible that something untoward and illicit occurred. Now they will have to prove this in court.
Fifthly, Sedo and mTLD have now not only opened the floodgates to the winners of the first auction but have also opened wide claims by the subsequent winners of the second auction for damages.
SIxth, a novel approach by the claimants in a US court could be the argument that Sedo have shown themselves to be unsuitable to run auctions and therefore perhaps an approach could be made to issue an injunction under the 'wire laws' that no Sedo auction is allowed to be transmitted within the US. through the US, on any equipment housed in the US (such as telephone wires or computers), or belonging to any US citizen or resident.
As I have said in other posts this could be a long drawn out affair, but my $20 is that the January 23rd auction as mentioned in the Sedo statement will not occur.
Point six is what I would call the 'grand slam approach'. This could of course destroy Sedo's business within the US, and indeed lead to much more trouble for Sedo. But hey, when have the majority of us ever thought that Sedo oozed with common sense. Rather than clear up the mess and move on Sedo and mTLD have decided on a show down, no doubt positive in their own minds that their big bucks and big muscles will win the day. Strange I seem to remember some chap called Goliath thinking the same!
Pred, well reported. Trust me to go for a bite to eat just as this was about to hit the wire!
Last edited by TheBaldOne : 12-17-2007 at 01:41 PM.
That is pretty BS. If I auction a painting, and you miss the auction, tough luck. By now every Tom and Joe will know about the auction, so hello higher bids on the re-run.
TheBaldOne raises a ton of valid points, and I totally feel that the winners from the 1st auction are the legitimate auction winners.
Another point has just been pointed out to me. Would not a court order that mTLD and Sedo should not profit from the re-run? To profit from the re-run would be unfare to the winners not just of the first auction but also the second inlawful auction. That would mean that any such auction to be held in the future (as if there will be one - ha, ha!) would have the prices of the domains capped by the courts.
Now that is another novel situation.
Sedo, mTLD, keep digging please, I have never seen anyone dig themselves into such a big hole before!
"but as we have learned from investigating the crash more carefully since December 5th, the auction was compromised and as such, DotMobi has exercised its right to declare the auction results void and will conduct a new auction at Sedo.com beginning on January 23rd, 2008."
Not sure exactly what that statement means. Sounds like Sedo is inferring some outside interference with the auction. If they had 10 times the usual amount of traffic for "high value auctions", it makes one wonder what actually took place.
Do the names sell for more or less in the second auction?
The mobi saga continues.........great way to get free publicity.
Rep added,
Regards,
Sags
__________________ "The only real failure in life is the failure to try."
as we had more than one winner any decision taken would be bad for one party; although it was the best decision for everybody...
to the party that received the first email saying he/she won the name but actually didnt, they can bid again so it is good for him/her and it is to the second party as well as they could lose the name in court for the first party; now they can win it and dont need to worry about losing the name... and it is good for mTLD and Sedo as well as prices will go higher than in the december 5
it will be nice to watch the bids for music.mobi... this beauty after developed will make .mobi very very known
So the law should be flouted. Is this what you are saying?
So contracts can be torn up. Is this what you are saying?
So Sedo and mTLD can run false auctions at the expense of the winners. Is this what you are saying?
The law of contract is very precise, as is the law with auctions. mTLD are contracted 'by law of contract' with the winners of the first auction. Now Sedo and mTLD are saying that mTLD had a veto on the auction results and are using that veto to declare the auction void. What total and absolute rubbish. If I was advising either Sedo or mTLD (which obviously I am not) the first thing I would suggest is that they seek 'top' international legal advice, secondly that they get a damn good PR team in who are aloof to the rangles in their respective boardrooms.
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