I’m sure there’s a back story on this, but Rick Schwartz, who co-produces the TRAFFIC domain name conferences, just sent out an e-mail announcing that Moniker will no longer be the exclusive provider of domain auctions at his conferences.

For the first time at any domain show we are going to have multiple live auctions presented by multiple auction houses. This is going to be a game changer! Howard and I have nothing to sell. Our job is to promote the industry as best we can and also be as inclusive as we can. In tough times like this there will actually be an increase in domain acquisitions. Domains that would have never been sold will now be on the auction block. Plus, with multiple companies promoting the live TRAFFIC auctions in New York City, the bidding action and excitement will be better than ever. More info will be released soon.

This certainly came as a shock to me. As Elliot Silver points out on his blog, this could force Moniker to ease up on its onerous restrictions for domain sellers.

As I’ve written before, Moniker has a lengthly exclusivity period of 2-4 months after the auction. Worse, this exclusivity period automatically renews unless you cancel it in writing 15 days before the expiration.

More likely, Moniker will have to compete on commissions and ease of submitting domains for consideration. I personally think a 15% cut is more than fair, but if a competitor shows up at the same conference offering 10% commissions, Moniker may be forced to act. For the latter — ease of submitting domains — Moniker recently streamlined the process to make it much more automated and user friendly.

I’m sure you’ll hear more about this soon…

I would be curious for any thoughts or advice on submitting to live auctions and which of these might be the best to try.