Business.com goes on the auction block for $300-$400 million

[mandy]

Entrepreneurs Jake Winebaum and Sky Dayton were widely mocked for lavishing $7.5 million on a single Internet domain name -- business.com -- back in 1999. It was the single highest price paid for a domain name at the time.

Now look who is having the last laugh.

The company that grew out of business.com -- a search engine used by businesses to find products and services -- is now on the auction block, and could fetch anywhere between $300 million and $400 million, according to people familiar with the matter...

full article: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118248076104444461.html

commentary:

There’s no way it’s worth it:

    * Sex.com reportedly sold for $14 million. If sex is arguably the Internet’s biggest industry it’s impossible to argue Business.com is worth $400 million. Beer.com went for $7 million. Do you want sex and beer or business? It’s a no brainer folks.
    * There’s no there there. Business.com was one of the vertical search engines I had on my Life without Google lists. The problem: It’s all sponsored and featured links. It’s more yellow pages than a real search.
    * Business.com’s goal, which is to drive readers to merchants for a bounty, doesn’t sync with the reported buyers’ models. If you’re Dow Jones are you really going to waste a URL like business.com just to shuffle readers to merchants? No. Content is going to get involved and arguably screw up the current model.

full article: http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?p=5475

[mandy]

Update: sold for $345 million

Business.com, the Santa Monica-based business info, directory and search site, has been sold to R.H. Donnelley (NYSE:RHD), the yellow pages and local search firm, paidContent.org has learned, for $345 million slightly above $350 million, close to what the company was expecting. The auction was heated, and initially included IAC, New York Times, DJ and News Corp. IAC didn’t end up bidding, News Corp dropped out as the price went above $300 million, Dow Jones couldn’t pull it together in the wake of all the turmoil with News Corp bid, and New York Times was in there until late in the game...

full article: http://www.paidcontent.org/entry/419-bus...s-corp-pr/

press release:

Through this transaction, R.H. Donnelley will add to its existing interactive portfolio a rapidly growing and profitable business-to-business company, with online properties that include Business.com, Work.com and the Business.com Advertising Network. These online brands attract an audience of highly qualified and motivated business decision makers. Business.com optimizes the revenues from these properties through the use of its Performance Based Advertising (PBA) platform, which is considered to be one of the most advanced systems in the marketplace.

In addition, R.H. Donnelley's Triple Play™ business-to-consumer integrated marketing solutions will also benefit from a significant infusion of leading-edge search and directory technology and interactive thought leadership from Business.com, particularly in the areas of performance based advertising technologies and corresponding ad network capabilities.

Business.com employs approximately 100 highly-skilled technologists, strategists and businesspeople and serves more than 6,000 business-to-business advertisers and their agencies. The company is profitable and is expected to generate revenues of greater than $50 million in 2007. It is widely recognized as a leader in the online business-to-business commercial search space and has been named to the "Inc. 500" and BtoB magazine's "Media Power 50".

full press release: http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=74700&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1031378&highlight=