Lately I've been trying to participate and learn the various rules of domain auctions across different sales platforms and domain registrars. Mostly I've been sticking to the major auction houses and registrars that run their own auctioning services. While it can be interesting to see what gets dropped more often than not I am finding that searching through and participating in domain auctions for quality dropped domain names can be quite an annoying and frustrating experience.
First off even if you read through the rules of domain auction services and try to understand their Terms of Service and guidelines before bidding, I am always finding there are little caveats or rules that are missed. This can really hurt you when bidding and trying to acquire a domain you really want or have a use for. I could list a lot of examples but honestly this post would be get a little long. Anyone who is experienced with in domain auctions knows exactly what I am talking about though. From what I've read on the domain forums and experienced myself it's hard to know every situation until you've gone through it yourself. Hey, you learn from your mistakes.
Another thing that kills me is when you are a high or only bidder in a domain in auction and you assume you will get it. When only a few hours before the auctions ends, boom, it disappears. What happened? The original registrant of the domain decided to renew it. This is great if you forgot to renew your domain and it was an oversight but not so great if you thought you were going to get the domain. I guess that's why ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) decided to implement Renewal Grace Periods. I agree with the ICANN policies but it's soooo annoying when it happens. I have had several quality domains I thought I was going to get for a great price when the original registrant renewed it.
For domainers and web entrepreneurs out there, have you ever been annoyed when participating in domain auctions? Have you had similar experiences as me?