> Why should the auction results be private????

This was discussed on the list months ago before the auction process
started.  The two competing issues are:

* openness and transparency
* a basic right to privacy

I commented at the time that I was completely undecided as to which of these
competing principles should take precedence.


After seeing the stuffup by stuff.com.au, I think I'm inclined to prefer
openeness and transparency - if only 'cause it spares us all the conspiracy
theory drama that seems to come automatically with anything that isn't
public.

However the decision was made that the privacy principle would prevail, and
the results would not be made public.



> I have clients who are screaming at me for information about the
> auctions -
> they are registered bidders and have ZERO information as to what is
> happening.


They're up to the letter 'F'.  They hope to finish by the end of June,
according to info at yesterday's seminar.


If anyone is hoping for info from the auctions process to assist them in
guidance as to how much they should bid for an upcoming name, I think they
should expect to be disappointed.   To rephrase my posting of yesterday
(which I wrote before I realised that the data was somehow accessible
somewhere):

Of the 3,0006 generic names on the original list:

* Up to half appear to be worth nothing at all.  Zip.  Zero.  Nada.  Either
no-one registered an interest in them, or no bids were received at time of
auction.
* Many of the ones that were auctioned went for a few hundred dollars
* Some went in the few thousand dollar range
* A few appeared to be going for quite substantial amounts - you've seen the
examples posted on this list.

How anyone could make use of this data escapes me.  For the remaining
generic names to be auctioned, there's no way of predicting whether they'll
be in the 'worthless' range, or actually have some goose willing to waste
serious money on them.


BTW, a compromise on the openness & transparency vs right to privacy
principles might be for auDA to make public the list of amounts paid,
without making public which amounts were for which names.  i.e., just
provide a list of the sale amounts, and nothing else.  That way 'the market'
might be a bit better informed about the median price, mean price, etc.


Regards, Mark

Mark Hughes
Effective Business Applications Pty Ltd
effectivebusiness§pplications.com.au
www.pplications.com.au
+61 4 1374 3959