Branson.com sells for $1.6M

Tuesday, June 6th, 2006

In a sale sure to send shockwaves through the domain community, Branson.com has sold for $1.6M

For those who don’t know, Branson is a small Missouri town that’s a big tourist attraction. It’s kind of like Nashville for people that don’t want to make the trip to Nashville. We’re talking country music and the like.

According to a press release, Branson.com just sold for $1.6M. That’s not a typo. This is a big deal sure to send shockwaves through the domain community, especially for anyone currently trying to buy a city name. Sellers of city domains will point to this sale and say “Branson.com sold for $1.6M. Any large city should sell for millions.” They’ll leave out the context that Branson.com had an existing web site and scores a whopping 5,563 with extension on Overture. We also don’t know if this was an all cash deal or involved equity.

Let’s put it in perspective. Vancouver.com, a large Canadian city, sold for only $123,000 this year. Macau.com, a gambling destination, sold for $550,000. Orleans.com sold for $45,450 (obviously not as good as NewOrleans.com). In 2005 Uruguay.com sold for $175,000, Bogota.com sold for $159,500, Paraguay.com for $150,000, and Redmond.com for $62,999.

Branson.com, the small Missouri town, sells for more than 10x Vancouver.com? Wow. But on a purely traffic basis, this makes sense.

I should note that I have a beef with Branson. The press release about this sale refers to Branson as the “Live Music Capital of the World.” Sorry guys, that’s my city — Austin — the true Live Music Capital of the World.

Further Reading:

  1. Interview with Branson.com Buyer
  2. Richard Branson wants his .XXX
  3. Music-Videos.com sells for $25k

4 Comments » - Posted in Uncategorized by

Comments

  1. Tech Confidential Blog
    June 6th, 2006 | 7:04 pm

    A King’s ransom for Branson.com

    If you build it they will come. That logic describes the Field of Dreams, but also to an extent the city of Branson, Mo., and apparently Branson.com. Branson residents Larry and Lianne Milton recently bought the domain name Branson.com for $1.6 million…

  2. Ramiro
    June 6th, 2006 | 9:54 pm

    Definitely a big sale!

    I agree that Austin is the real live music capital of the world. The acts in Branson do not compare to those at South by Southwest or the Austin City Limits Music Fest.

  3. 1Offs
    June 7th, 2006 | 4:36 am

    Just wondering did Richard Branson buy the domain? RichardBranson.com directs to his Virgin conglomerate.

  4. Editor
    June 7th, 2006 | 5:41 pm

    Apparently it will remain focused on the city of Branson, MO.

Leave a reply


Your comment will be deleted if: you use an invalid email address, you use a URL shortener for your web site link, your website link goes to a parked domain name, or your "name" is an advertisement keyword.


TOP