HUGE DOMAINS SNIPING GODADDY CLOSEOUTS

[wwwweb]

So annoying Godaddy hasn't stopped Huge Domains from sniping Godaddy Closeouts with their automated tools, no way a human bidder can win a even closeout.

First they were sniping with the backorders, now you cut that out, and you are letting them snipe via automated tools.

So what do you say @Joe Styler , you want to even the playing field a bit, as your partners are bidding everything in a split second, from $12, to $11, and bidding everything else into the hundreds from a simple bid. I would rather pay a Huge Domains surcharge at checkout.


Huge Domains has an unfair advantage on the auction platform, essentially taxing every user for using it with their automated access advantages given to them thru the house.

 

[tonyk2000]

Can GoDaddy forum reps confirm if there are any agreements like this in place, with any entity?

They cannot. If there are such agreements - then there is NDA signed by both parties.

 

[wwwweb]

Can GoDaddy forum reps confirm if there are any agreements like this in place, with any entity?

It would be under NDA if they provide any spend/bid level incentives, and they will never confirm it. Godaddy loves to sign NDA’s for everything. I wouldn’t be surprised if turn commerce has multiple NDA’s in place with Godaddy given their activities on the site. You would have to watch how they word it, maybe they don’t have a nda did huge names, but for turn commerce would be a different story.

 

[Joe Styler]

@Joe Styler @Paul Nicks would what wwwweb hinted at be a reality? Thank you

I think this thread puts us in a very funny spot. It certainly plays right into the conspiracy theorists hands. It says if we say, No, then of course there is an NDA so we have to say that. If we say yes, everyone goes WOW, See! So I really don't know that saying anything gets us anywhere when it seems people have their minds made up already.
The thing is though we don't have a deal for them to get money back for buying domains or anyone else. That kind of goes against what I have argued all along as being a real core principle of the auction. It needs to be a level playing field where each name stands on its own. I honestly don't even know how legal that would be, giving incentives like that. It certainly would be something I'd talk with a bunch of lawyers about before considering. I haven't
We are a pretty open and transparent company. Sharing what we can. We have certain technical, legal, or compliance related things we can't share, like things that would get us in trouble with the SEC by releasing numbers early etc. Beyond those things though we have always been as open as possible. We try to treat everyone very fairly and value our customers, big or small.

 

[equity78]

I think this thread puts us in a very funny spot. It certainly plays right into the conspiracy theorists hands. It says if we say, No, then of course there is an NDA so we have to say that. If we say yes, everyone goes WOW, See! So I really don't know that saying anything gets us anywhere when it seems people have their minds made up already.
The thing is though we don't have a deal for them to get money back for buying domains or anyone else. That kind of goes against what I have argued all along as being a real core principle of the auction. It needs to be a level playing field where each name stands on its own. I honestly don't even know how legal that would be, giving incentives like that. It certainly would be something I'd talk with a bunch of lawyers about before considering. I haven't
We are a pretty open and transparent company. Sharing what we can. We have certain technical, legal, or compliance related things we can't share, like things that would get us in trouble with the SEC by releasing numbers early etc. Beyond those things though we have always been as open as possible. We try to treat everyone very fairly and value our customers, big or small.

Thanks Joe, I wasn't talking about the entire scope of the thread, just the rebate part mentioned by @wwwweb and you answered that perfectly. "The thing is though we don't have a deal for them to get money back for buying domains or anyone else"

Thank you

 

[wwwweb]

Really level playing field, which you left open for them to spend all those backorders they purchased when the backorder loophole was exposed, took you over a month to close that loophole, after it was open for years. Also a very level playing field in gaming closeouts now with their automated bids which human bidding can’t match.

The real question is how many NDA’s do they have in place, my guess would be a lot more than none.

If Huge Names doesn’t want to sell a name they have for a fixed price on godaddy, and refuse to transfer do you think godaddy is going to suspend them like Average Joe, hell no.

There is many ways to get around such questions, and legalities, like offering lower commissions on sales sold thru the channel etc... many ways to get creative.


It is by no means a level playing field.

 

[tonyk2000]

Godaddy loves to sign NDA’s for everything.

It would be interesting to understand what (if any) expiration on the confidentiality term is in place for commonly signed NDAs in either Arizona or Colorado, and are such agreements regulated in any aspect by laws of appropriate states... Or is it only between the parties?
Just an academic interest.

 

[wwwweb]

It would be interesting to understand what (if any) expiration on the confidentiality term is in place for commonly signed NDAs in either Arizona or Colorado, and are such agreements regulated in any aspect by laws of appropriate states... Or is it only between the parties?
Just an academic interest.

You want to see a list of names for sale, sign a nda, you want access to a special program sign a nda... nda’s galore up in there.

 

[Brian L.]

I've been losing almost every auction to them. There isn't really any point using GoDaddy auctions anymore

 

[wwwweb]

I've been losing almost every auction to them. There isn't really any point using GoDaddy auctions anymore

Tell that to Godaddy, they thinks it’s a level playing field.

Average bidder says otherwise, but that falls on deaf ears.

It’s ok Godaddy can be stubborn, they come around eventually. They were stubborn about backorder loophole, they were stubborn for years over bidder id’s. Given every auction platform showed bidders ids, they for some reason couldn’t. I guess for all of Huge Names bid ups in auctions, giving them access to poach, and game closeouts it’s a bit of a token gesture, lets them dollar cost average. Just takes time, but in the end, after x many years they come around.

 

[jideofor]

@Joe Styler @Paul Nicks would what wwwweb hinted at be a reality? Thank you

Let assume it is true. Do you really expect them to divulge that to you on a public forum? Do not forget these guys have their jobs cut out for them with RULES within company's policies.

 

[Jv1999]

ok now i understand why everyone angri...

i had about 7 domains i wanted to snipe today... and no one else saw them... so i put in my 12 bid... and then the bot came in. No one else. It was just this dumb bot. It bid it. And then my whole day's haul was lost.. just like that... not to a human, but to some bot that simply searches and destroys.

 

[pavan kumar t]

ok now i understand why everyone angri...

i had about 7 domains i wanted to snipe today... and no one else saw them... so i put in my 12 bid... and then the bot came in. No one else. It was just this dumb bot. It bid it. And then my whole day's haul was lost.. just like that... not to a human, but to some bot that simply searches and destroys.

Because of this bot I have lost more than 60 domains last month.

 

[wwwweb]

ok now i understand why everyone angri...

i had about 7 domains i wanted to snipe today... and no one else saw them... so i put in my 12 bid... and then the bot came in. No one else. It was just this dumb bot. It bid it. And then my whole day's haul was lost.. just like that... not to a human, but to some bot that simply searches and destroys.

Sorry, to hear about all the time wasted, and it wouldn't have mattered because if you let the names go into closeout, they would have beat you at $11 snipe as there is no way a human can out snipe that bot bidder in closeouts. Godaddy sees nothing wrong with this, it is great one of their best customers deploys an advanced bidding bot that blankets the majority of names on the platform. Good thing you realized what was going on, as the goal is to get newbies, and others to keep bidding into the hundreds, and overpay.

Most people have given up on Godaddy, might as well call it Huge Daddy.

 

[Brian L.]

I think this thread puts us in a very funny spot. It certainly plays right into the conspiracy theorists hands. It says if we say, No, then of course there is an NDA so we have to say that. If we say yes, everyone goes WOW, See! So I really don't know that saying anything gets us anywhere when it seems people have their minds made up already.
The thing is though we don't have a deal for them to get money back for buying domains or anyone else. That kind of goes against what I have argued all along as being a real core principle of the auction. It needs to be a level playing field where each name stands on its own. I honestly don't even know how legal that would be, giving incentives like that. It certainly would be something I'd talk with a bunch of lawyers about before considering. I haven't
We are a pretty open and transparent company. Sharing what we can. We have certain technical, legal, or compliance related things we can't share, like things that would get us in trouble with the SEC by releasing numbers early etc. Beyond those things though we have always been as open as possible. We try to treat everyone very fairly and value our customers, big or small.

Thanks for the info. I know you can't go into details about any deals you have with a specific company, but perhaps you can help me understand the following. There have been multiple times I've followed no bid auctions through to their listing as a closeout domain at $12. On numerous occasions, they disappear after no bids, without ever reaching the closeout stage. After a week or so I find them listed on 'Huge Domains'. Is there an API that auction clients can access for their bots to buy closeout domains instantly? How is it technically possible to buy a closeout domain with it never being listed as a closeout?

 

[wwwweb]

Thanks for the info. I know you can't go into details about any deals you have with a specific company, but perhaps you can help me understand the following. There have been multiple times I've followed no bid auctions through to their listing as a closeout domain at $12. On numerous occasions, they disappear after no bids, without ever reaching the closeout stage. After a week or so I find them listed on 'Huge Domains'. Is there an API that auction clients can access for their bots to buy closeout domains instantly? How is it technically possible to buy a closeout domain with it never being listed as a closeout?

It’s quite simple just like you can’t react humanly as fast as a computer to a calculation, or a click, the same is true for the closeouts.

The closeout access is a Thank You to Huge Domains from Godaddy from the tens of millions of free bids that are being bidded up daily as lemmings keep fighting a bot for domains. You don’t stand a chance if they want a domain, your wasting your life counting down the clock on that auction. Godaddy is well aware of what is happening, as they were with the backorder loophole where you never saw the domain fall into a $11 closeout as as soon as the auction closed if you placed a backorder on it, it would automatically win you the domain before it hit closeouts. Even after this loophole was outed, Godaddy failed to closeout in a timely fashion, most likely because major players had bought a lot of now worthless backorders that didn’t hold much weight anymore.

If the game is fixed, take your business elsewhere, most people are buying domains for more than end users will pay these days over at Godaddy because the bid is in.

Many of these newbie overspenders don’t realize what happens to domain valuations, and sales when the economy goes the other way.

 

[Brian L.]

It’s quite simple just like you can’t react humanly as fast as a computer to a calculation, or a click, the same is true for the closeouts.

The closeout access is a Thank You to Huge Domains from Godaddy from the tens of millions of free bids that are being bidded up daily as lemmings keep fighting a bot for domains. You don’t stand a chance if they want a domain, your wasting your life counting down the clock on that auction. Godaddy is well aware of what is happening, as they were with the backorder loophole where you never saw the domain fall into a $11 closeout as as soon as the auction closed if you placed a backorder on it, it would automatically win you the domain before it hit closeouts. Even after this loophole was outed, Godaddy failed to closeout in a timely fashion, most likely because major players had bought a lot of now worthless backorders that didn’t hold much weight anymore.

If the game is fixed, take your business elsewhere, most people are buying domains for more than end users will pay these days over at Godaddy because the bid is in.

Many of these newbie overspenders don’t realize what happens to domain valuations, and sales when the economy goes the other way.

I'm mostly just curious at this point whether Godaddy simply gives them the domains they want with no need for any action or if GoDaddy gives them access to their API for a sniping bot.

 

[wwwweb]

I'm mostly just curious at this point whether Godaddy simply gives them the domains they want with no need for any action or if GoDaddy gives them access to their API for a sniping bot.

Yes, they have API access, as they are a high active user. There is no way you can beat their bot in closeouts, thru means of human clicking. If there is a name they want, and you place a last minute bid, their bot will counter that bid with a $xxx bid, or if you want to try closeout against a bot, it will keep hitting the servers, and claim it the second it opens up. The deck is stacked against you, either you pay up, or lose the domain. You really can’t win.

 

[Joe Styler]

Thanks for the info. I know you can't go into details about any deals you have with a specific company, but perhaps you can help me understand the following. There have been multiple times I've followed no bid auctions through to their listing as a closeout domain at $12. On numerous occasions, they disappear after no bids, without ever reaching the closeout stage. After a week or so I find them listed on 'Huge Domains'. Is there an API that auction clients can access for their bots to buy closeout domains instantly? How is it technically possible to buy a closeout domain with it never being listed as a closeout?

It's not. They all get listed for sale if they are purchased via closeout.

 

[Joe Styler]

Yes, they have API access, as they are a high active user. There is no way you can beat their bot in closeouts, thru means of human clicking. If there is a name they want, and you place a last minute bid, their bot will counter that bid with a $xxx bid, or if you want to try closeout against a bot, it will keep hitting the servers, and claim it the second it opens up. The deck is stacked against you, either you pay up, or lose the domain. You really can’t win.

or you get API access yourself and try the same thing as anyone else with an API. also as I have stated several times on namepros we limit the checks via API so no one can check all the names instantly via API because the amount of calls is limited. We do not want the closeouts to become a drop catch scenario where our auction's servers are basically ddos attacked when closeouts start. Everyone has the same opportunity.

 

[Brian L.]

It's not. They all get listed for sale if they are purchased via closeout.

'
So they use a bot accessing your API do this then? It all happens in less than a second.

 

[Brian L.]

or you get API access yourself and try the same thing as anyone else with an API. also as I have stated several times on namepros we limit the checks via API so no one can check all the names instantly via API because the amount of calls is limited. We do not want the closeouts to become a drop catch scenario where our auction's servers are basically ddos attacked when closeouts start. Everyone has the same opportunity.

Oh, Okay. Thanks. I'll signup for access to your auction API. Is there a link to this?

 

[Brian L.]

Figured out where GoDaddy's application programming interface is.

If anyone else is interested, it can be found here: https://developer.godaddy.com

Aftermarket specific API info:
https://developer.godaddy.com/doc/endpoint/aftermarket

 

[Joe Styler]

Figured out where GoDaddy's application programming interface is.

If anyone else is interested, it can be found here: https://developer.godaddy.com

Aftermarket specific API info:
https://developer.godaddy.com/doc/endpoint/aftermarket

That is correct. Once you set that up and get an API key we will need to know your IP address and customer number. You can email that to me via pm if you like.

 

[Brian L.]

That is correct. Once you set that up and get an API key we will need to know your IP address and customer number. You can email that to me via pm if you like.

Thanks, appreciate it.

 

[markfromslo]

Ah, Bidder 913932. I just looked today to see who I was losing all my names to, and it's Bidder 913932. I'm glad to finally learn who it is. I wrote to Godaddy today with a complaint. Not so much about the automated bidding, but on sniping the $12->$11 names.

Just recently, I've lost these names to Huge Domains: EmergencyRobotics.com, unfinite.com, ciamo.com, streetphotographer.com, sexytights.com, mindfulnesshacks.com, remindio.com, ezfacelift.com, pittsburgher.com, top10trends.com, easyflorida.com, cleandoggy.com. So many more. And this list does not include the even more names that I tried to buy at $11 but was sniped.

Short term, it's making Godaddy more money. For example, today I bid on a name with no bids and auction with just seconds left. Hoping to get it for $11, I ended up having to pay $207 once Bidder 913932 saw I put a bid on it.

Long term, Godaddy is pissing of hundreds or thousands of loyal customers. I don't think it's a winning situation.

As for me, it's so frustrating, I think I'll just be hanging up my hat soon.

It does tell me one thing though: the domain market is not as healthy as some think. It's Huge Domains scooping up many or most of the names, not individual domain investors. Another good reason to perhaps step away.

Solution: I know Godaddy won't stop automated bidding through the API, but they could prohibit the sniping the $12->$11 names. That would make a lot of people happy.