Cnet is reporting that Sex.com will be going up for auction next month as part of a foreclosure.  The current owner paid $14 million for it and claimed to have grand plans for it, but nothing really happened.

Sex.com was originally registered by the founder of Match.com and in the early days was bringing in $100 million a year.  A long court battle ensued when somehow the name got transfered to a con artist and by the time it was resolved and sold, the Internet had vastly changed.

Of course a good name is important for any business, and sex.com is a short, easy to remember name.  But how many people have heard of sex.com or been to sex.com?  Not many in recent years.  In the content business, you need to have good content associated with your good name.  Otherwise, your name and website become very forgettable and the money you spent on a great name has gone to waste.

It amazes me when I look at all the sites that have sold for 6 and 7 figure numbers.  So many of them have turned into absolutely nothing.  When I cruise industry forums and I am amazed at how many people just focus on getting a shell of a website up with no real substance and then try to get as many visitors as possible to it for the least amount of money.  Just the other day I found this whole network of alt porn TGP’s where it took me at least 20 clicks before I got to an actual gallery.  Each thumbnail click led me to another TGP.  It was a giant incestuous traffic trade and everyone involved forgot they are supposed to be providing something of value to the user.

I have a hope that with the new decade and a further maturation of the Internet people will realize that the best way to make money with content is to stop spending resources on expensive names, trading junk traffic and tricking people and actually putting some effort into doing real development and coming up with creative ideas.

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