Domain name buyback

Are you interested in a domain name that has already been registered by a third party? Ask Solidnames, free of charge, to buy this domain name already registered.
On receipt of your mandate, Solidnames contacts the owner anonymously to see if he or she is willing to sell the domain name, and if so, at what price. Solidnames will then negotiate the lowest price for the domain name to be purchased.

 

Solidnames can buy domain names held by holders from all over the world. We approach domain name owners anonymously, keeping our customers’ identities confidential throughout the transaction.

The negotiation mandate is free and non-exclusive. Solidnames is remunerated with a commission on the sale, guaranteeing a negotiation to the buyer’s advantage.

 

Fixed fee only in the event of effective redemption of the domain name

In the event of mutual agreement on the purchase price of the domain name, Solidnames will send you a quotation including :

  • Purchase price of the domain name from the seller with a copy of the domain name purchase invoice to authenticate the actual purchase price of the domain name.
  • Escrow fees (e.g. Escrow.com)
  • Bank charges for payments in non-euro currencies
  • Fixed Solidnames commission of €200 excl. tax for the purchase of a domain name for less than €5,000 excl. tax. For purchases over €5,000 excluding VAT, SOLIDNAMES has a commission capped at 4% of the purchase price from the seller.
  • Secure management of the domain name via a transfer to Solidnames and automatic subscription for a further year (required at the time of transfer by most registries).
  • Change of ownership in buyer’s name

On receipt of the signed quotation, Solidnames sends you the associated invoice with payment on receipt. Once the funds have been paid, Solidnames proceeds with the actual purchase of the domain name, secures the entire transaction and repatriates the domain name in the name of the end customer. The domain name can be transferred to another registrar before its expiry date.

On average, buying back a domain name takes between three weeks and three months. If there is no mutual agreement to buy back the domain name, Solidnames offers you various alternatives (e.g. verification of the holder’s whois details, backorder, SecURL monitoring, other domain names available or to be bought back, etc.).

SOLIDNAMES also offers to buy NFT domain names in Web3 extensions such as .ETH, .BITCOIN or .X.

Why buy a domain name?

 

  • Creating a new name

In 2015, Gdf Suez bought the engie.ru domain name corresponding to its new Engie brand on Russian territory for 9,999 euros.

Similarly, in 2013, the Redcats group, which owns the La Redoute brand, bought the domain name balsamik.fr for 1,177 euros for its brand dedicated to large sizes.

  • Redemption from a legitimate third party

In 2008, household linen designer Becquet paid 70,000 euros for the .COM domain name held by a namesake whose surname was Becquet.

Short domain names can be owned by legitimate third parties with a meaningful acronym. The U.S. Farm Bureau owned the domain name fb.com, which Facebook purchased for $8.5 million in 2010.

  • Descriptive generic names

Companies are taking over the name of their online business. Expedia bought hotels.com for $11 million in 2011.

L’Oréal bought the beauty couple with and without accents for 35,000 euros.

The broker MeilleurTaux.com bought the domain name meilleureassurance.com for almost 15,000 euros in 2013.

  • Buying back cybersquatted domain names

Some brands prefer to buy back domain names speculatively registered by cybersquatters rather than initiate out-of-court proceedings. That said, the cost of buying back cybersquatted domain names is often somewhat lower than the cost of legal proceedings.

Domain names corresponding to trademarks are sometimes bought back when the outcome of a potential decision is uncertain. For example, TripAdvisor paid $50,000 in 2010 for its .UK domain name.

Average price of a domain name buyback

In 2024, the average price of a domain name buyback is around $5,000 (USD, $), according to Escrow.com.

Short domain names (e.g. duo.fr, sms.fr, ect…) are often more expensive than a normal Internet address.

A domain name buyback is most likely to succeed when the domain name is offered for sale on a marketplace such as Afternic, Dan or Sedo. In some cases, a fixed price is offered, enabling immediate purchase.

A domain name used by a third party will inevitably be less transferable unless a high bid is submitted.

Record .COM domain name buybacks

Domain name speculation has always been a source of fantasy in the Internet world. There have been several record-breaking public sales, mainly in .COM, the world’s most registered extension. In 2019, the most expensive domain name in history voice.com sold for $30 million.