Dot Asia released a press release about their successful auction

.Asia Auctions Fetches Over US$3 Million

.Asia Hot-or-Not Contest First Weekly Prize Winning Domain: resorts.asia
GMA2008.Asia Attracts Millions of Hits, Drives .Asia Adoption

Hong Kong, 16 June 2008 – DotAsia Organisation announced today total registration for .Asia
domains are expected to exceed a quarter of a million by the end of the first quarter after its public
launch . Proceeds from the .Asia Sunrise and Landrush auctions have already exceeded US$3M
and rising, demonstrating strong demand and growth value for .Asia domains. (more…)

Jpost, the top israeli newspaper, published an article on the upcoming Israel.com auction at moniker

You would think Israel.com would be an exciting, detailed Web site on the Jewish state, designed to attract tourists from abroad. But when the Web address is punched in to your Internet browser, all you get is a simple page with an Israeli flag smack in the middle.

In contrast, Australia.com has a virtual tour video where a young man from down under guides you through the complex and fun site, and Mexico.com helps Net surfers plan their entire vacation in “just one click.”

But come May 23, Israel.com should be on its way to becoming exciting and informative. The domain name will be auctioned off to the highest bidder on the Moniker.com live auction site. The physical auction will take place at the T.R.A.F.F.I.C East Conference in Orlando, Florida. (more…)

CBS is making a bigger push on the Internet. The broadcast company said Thursday it would acquire CNet for $11.50 a share, or $1.8 billion, in a deal that will make CBS one of the top 10 Internet companies in the United States. The deal offers CNet shareholders a 44% premium to Wednesday’s closing price and comes as CBS has been struggling to gain traction with investors.

“There are very few opportunities to acquire a profitable, growing, well-managed Internet company like CNet Networks,” said CEO Les Moonves. “CBS stands for premium content and unparalleled reach, and CNet Networks will add a tremendous platform to extend our complementary entertainment, news, sports, music and information content to a whole new global audience.” (more…)

Ask.com acquires Dictionary.com, other Internet reference sites in search of better answers

Ask.com has bought a stable of Internet reference sites that includes Dictionary.com in its latest effort to distinguish itself from online search leader Google Inc. and other much larger rivals.

Besides Dictionary.com, Ask is picking up Thesaurus.com and Reference.com in its acquisition of Lexico Publishing Group LLC. Terms of the deal, set to be announced Thursday, aren’t being disclosed. (more…)

GodTube.com, a YouTube knockoff for the evangelical set, seems to be one step closer to building a kingdom on earth.Last week the site, which shows Christian videos and features a flip-through Bible and prayer blogs, received a $30 million investment from GLG Partners, a big London hedge fund. The investment valued GodTube at nearly $150 million, according to PaidContent.org.

GodTube offers sermons, theological debates, Christian rap videos and low-budget skits like “See man watching porn get caught by Jesus,” which plays out exactly as the title suggests. The investment will help sustain the on-screen Bible and a prayer wall where devout Web surfers can petition God to bless the afflicted or warm the heart of an intransigent girlfriend. (more…)

From prweb,  still unconfirmed:

Corporation and LLC formation company acquires toll free number 1-800-COMPANY for $10 million.

(PRWEB) May 9, 2008 — The toll free number, 1-800-COMPANY, was acquired today by a document filing company that forms corporations, LLCs and trusts for $10 million. The associated website that promotes the company’s services, www.1800company.com, was recently launched as well.

The acquiring party is associated with Companies Incorporated (www.companiesinc.com) a corporation and LLC formation service that started business in 1977. The toll free number and website will be operated under newly formed 1-800-COMPANY, LLLP based in Santa Clarita, Calif. Santa Clarita touches the northern border of Los Angeles. 1-800-COMPANY, LLLP will be managed by Lincoln International Services, Inc. established in 1908. The 1908 company was acquired from a federal attorney who recently retired from the company formation business.

“We are excited about the new brand,” says CEO Kevin Wessell. “1-800-COMPANY® is a memorable brand name that, promoted properly, will breed in instant recognition and will allow us to serve more customers.”

Mr. Wessell adds, “We acquired the company that holds the toll free number along with an associated domain name and the trademark. Then we acquired additional relevant domain names. Now we have all pieces of the puzzle in place. Just to clarify,” Wessell adds, “the larger transaction was between two of our companies for tax reasons and to set a value on the brand. So, we acquired the individual pieces from various outside parties for a hefty sum but a bit less than the numbers that are being tossed about in the media. We see a tremendous growth of the enterprise with the addition of this valuable new brand.”

BQB.com has recently started operating as a new auction site for short domains:

BQB.com is a no commission, next generation domain name auction platform dedicated to short domains. Founded in March 2008, BQB.com Inc seeks to reduce the pain sellers of domain names currently endure, paying exhorbitant commissions which are in our opinion often unjustified. BQB.com also seeks to create a marketplace for short domain names, which we believe will continue to be one of the strongest appreciating internet investments for many years to come. BQB is founded on Professionalism - each member is individually screened, successful applications are manually approved. Better Quality Business really is just a few keystrokes away! (more…)

Not surprising with their recent rapid economical growth, China now has more internet users than US. And they also have over 10 million .cn domain names registered.

But what? At $0.13 per domain (yes, you read it right - you can register a .cn domain for just 13 cents, for example on todaynic)  Chinese domains are less valuable than .ca, even though they outnumber them by more than 10 to 1.

 Also many Chinese companies prefer phonetic .com names. I’m aware of a few private sales for such names in high 5 and 6 figures. Naturally these are.com names that refer to some of the top industries in Chinese.

  (more…)

Another domaining article in the main press, this time from the British top newspaper the guardian:

Speculators are the latest breed of dotcom entrepreneur, buying up website domain names - and making their fortune by dealing in them.

Neil Stanley goes to bed each night knowing he will wake up a little richer. All over the world, the clicks of computer mice are depositing a few more pounds into his account. His secret is that he was smart enough to ask: what’s in a name?

Stanley is a trader in domain names, the addresses of websites which commonly follow ‘www’ and end with ‘.com’ or ‘.co.uk’. Once a banker at Goldman Sachs, he now has a different portfolio of lucrative investments including bridalfashion.co.uk, onlinecareers.co.uk, schoolguide.co.uk, sendingflowers.co.uk and impotency.co.uk. (more…)

New article in press featuring Internet Marketers and Domainers in Canada.com:

He works two hours a day and makes as much as $10 million a year.

That’s why Markus Frind is already considered a dot-com legend at the ripe old age of 29.

Frind is the sole owner of PlentyofFish.com, one of the most popular online dating sites in Canada, the U.S. and the U.K.

Running his matchmaking business from his 83-square-metre apartment in downtown Vancouver, Frind is a one-man show in a business many thought was impossible to do solo. (more…)