Dan.com entered the domain aftermarket segment of the domain industry, becoming a popular platform for domain investors.
Its subsequent sale to GoDaddy for approximately $71 million dollars kickstarted a process of assimilation: GoDaddy already has its own marketplace, Afternic, which is promoted as the go-to platform for domain sales.
In recent weeks, users of Dan.com have expressed their frustration regarding a series of changes and adjustments that are placing emphasis on Afternic. In short, Dan.com is not the same as before the acquisition by GoDaddy.
Fresh commentary from JamesDomains states:
“Given Dan now requires TXT verification, has slower response, another system to maintain, etc… if you’ve got Afternic set-up, what’s the point of listing on Dan? Thoughts?”
Domain investor, Bob Hawkes, pointed out why he prefers Dan.com:
- They allow CamelCase.
- Descriptions can be added.
- If desired logos can be included.
- They handle some TLDs not possible at Afternic.
- Seller directly handles offer negotiations.
It goes without saying that Dan.com was designed from the very beginning to be an easy to use domain selling platform, with an intuitive interface and a ton of features that Afternic lacked.
Domain Robin concurred, adding the following comments:
“Afternic doesn’t setup HTTPS for your domains, Dan does – many people set their browsers so that all sites automatically redirect to HTTPS version. […] The Admin UI is still much better than Afternic.You can sell domains that are within 60 days transfer lock, get the payment immediately and the buyer can get the domain immediately if you have account with the same registrar (I’m not sure you can do this with Afternic).”
From these responses and feedback it is clear that Dan.com is a superior platform that Afternic, despite recent upgrades, does not match up to. However, GoDaddy appears to be unwilling to retain Dan.com as an independent, domainer-friendly platform and it’s mirroring Dan.com’s best features on Afternic, a marketplace in perpetual beta.
But will this be the end of Dan.com?
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One of the main issues I have with Dan.com is that I do not get any details about the potential buyer.
At uni I got an email and/or phone number.
For the % they get I think they could at least provide that.
Ahsoka – Unfortunately Dan.com removed even the ability to see the potential buyer’s IP and only provides their country. When Uniregistry provided that information it was a tool in the hands of the seller that could research their buyer and negotiate a bigger sale, thus a bigger cut for the platform. GoDaddy doesn’t believe in an honor system, and the seller is seen as eager to bypass the platform by direct engagement with the buyer.