Power.com

To All of the Heroes That Helped – Thank You…

Power.com — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 17:20:30 +0000

To all of the heroes that helped. Thank You...

Scott Olson, Getty Images

The Biggest Nuclear Reactor Ever Built

Power.com — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 16:54:59 +0000

The following excerpt is provided today by Jeff Siegel, editor of Energy & Capital, an investment newsletter I get from time to time that focuses on “practical investment analysis in the new energy economy.”

“A few years ago, I listened to legendary architect William McDonough speak at a green building conference.

During his presentation, he shared a story about someone from the Department of Energy asking him what he thought of clean nuclear power. His response:

I love nuclear power. I love clean nuclear power. I am especially fond of fusion. I think we should spend trillions of dollars immediately on fusion capture. And thank God, literally, we already have our reactor, the sun, exactly where we need it 93 million miles away.

The Biggest Nuclear Reactor Ever Built

That story alone got McDonough a standing ovation from the very large crowd of clean energy purists. It also opened up a great dialogue between nuclear supporters and nuclear opponents, and was probably the first time I had ever seen solar advocates and nuclear power advocates discuss the pros and cons of both energy sources in a rational manner.

It is true that the power of the sun is enormous; it delivers more energy to the earth in one hour than we use in a single year from fossil fuels, nuclear, and all renewable sources combined.

And if you’re a regular reader of these pages, you know that on a global scale, we are finally starting to utilize this inexhaustible resource…”

Bankrate.com Goes on $83 million Spending Spree…

Power.com — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 17:28:47 +0000

Over the past year and a half Bankrate.com has tapped the corporate kitty to the tune of over $83 million dollars for (5) FIVE domains for an eye-popping average of over $16 million per domain!

The reported purchases included:

NetQuote.com: $40.9 million

CreditCards.com: $26.5 million

CarInsuranceQuotes.com: $7.5 million

InsuranceQuotes.com: $5.9 million

Bargaineering.com: $2.7 million

The total acquisitions over the same period were substantially higher with costs allocated to other less expensive domain sales, goodwill, consideration for non-compete agreements, internet content, customer relationships, developed technologies etc.

The astonishing fact is that the above figures are for the domains ONLY.

It seems to me that the only thing missing from Bankrates stable of powerhouse domains is, well … Power.

Kudos to my cross-town amigo and fellow domain asset manager George Kirikos for highlighting the Bankrate.com SEC filing.

Premium Generic Domains Fetch Millions

Power.com — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:57:19 +0000

Oversee.net reports that the premium generic keyword domain Social.com has sold for $2.6 million. Social.com was sold in June at Oversee’s DOMAINfest Europe Auction.

Data.com, which had a reserve price of $1.5 million, reortedly sold for “significantly” more. The final sales price was not publicly disclosed.

Immediate plans for the domains are predictable but unknown. Data.com has a landing page announcing “Data.com is on the way. Stay tuned.” At the time of writing Social.com was not resolving.

NFL in Los Angeles – The Team Speculation Continues

Power.com — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 11:23:58 +0000

As previously reported here at Power.com, the rumor mill continues to swirl regarding which team will relocate to Los Angeles should either billionaire Phil Anschutz or Ed Roski drum up enough support for the final go ahead.

As Dave Denholm of the Los Angeles Downtown News opines…

“Los Angeles Chargers: The Chargers did not exercise their lease exit provision, but are committed to staying in San Diego only through the upcoming 2011 season.

Why They Will Move Here: Because the Chargers cannot get a new stadium deal done in San Diego. That is just not happening. They also have a core base of L.A. fans and, decades, ago, the team played in L.A.

Why Not: The team wants a downtown San Diego stadium (or maybe they just want a “downtown” stadium.). Really, other than blatant loyalty, which no longer exists in sports, there is no good reason why not.

Odds They Play in L.A.: 3-2

Los Angeles Rams: The Rams can leave St. Louis if their domed stadium is not considered in the top quarter of all NFL stadia in 2014. The L.A. Coliseum, or even the Roman Coliseum, has a greater chance of being considered a top eight stadium in 2014 than St. Louis’ concrete coffin, so the Rams have their out.

Why They Will Move Here: Rams owner Stan Kroenke already has ties with AEG and Phil Anschutz through each’s ownership in Major League Soccer franchises. And a lot of Angelenos still have Rams merch they can dig out of the closet. Actually, some never stopped wearing it.

Why Not: Didn’t they just move the team to St. Louis? It might be too good of a market for the NFL to abandon again.

Odds: 10-1

Los Angeles Vikings: The Vikings’ stadium lease is up at the end of this year. They do have a deal to build a new stadium, but its funding plan faces major political hurdles.

Why They Will Move Here: I just get the feeling that the Vikings are tired of all the haggling. They struck a stadium deal, but that may be just to save face. They have to know how difficult it will be for any government (local or state) to pony up significant monies for a stadium. Plus, part of the roof fell in last year. It made for great TV.

Why Not: They have a deal in place, and if the funding gets approved, they will stay. Also, isn’t Minnesota just way too historically important to the league to be uprooted? Maybe I’m naïve, but is nothing sacred?

Odds: 25-1

Los Angeles Raiders: The Raiders have a lease with the city of Oakland through 2013. They also have a lousy stadium and would never consider sharing a new one with the 49ers up there.

Why They Will Move Here: Owner Al Davis is such a wildcard, he just might be willing. Remember, he did it once before.

Why Not: Al Davis is such a wildcard, who in their right mind would want to deal with him? Plus, after the thug atmosphere at L.A. Raiders’ games, a lot of people don’t want history repeating.

Odds: 30-1

Los Angeles Jaguars: The Jaguars’ stadium lease runs through 2030. Yes, that date is correct, but there are some outs. One clause states if they lose money three straight years, the team can escape its lease.

Why They Will Move Here: The Jags are not terribly popular anymore in Jacksonville. And, Jacksonville is not exactly L.A. It’s more like… Jacksonville. The market is just tapped out.

Why Not: The team would have to pay up to $100 million as compensation to void their lease. We’re talking “‘terribly overrated, doesn’t really want to play football’ defensive tackle” money.

Odds: 100-1

Los Angeles Bills: The Bills’ lease expires on July 31, 2013. Not sure there is any money for a new stadium in that town.

Why They Will Move Here: Because how much fun can it be to sit in minus-18 degree weather to watch a terrible team? They can be terrible in 75 degrees. At least people can go in a T-shirt.

Why Not: Blame Canada, it’s the whole Toronto thing. The Canadians don’t mind buying tickets once a year to see bad NFL football.

Odds: 250-1

Los Angeles Browns: Being a diehard Cleveland Browns fan for my entire 41 years, this thought actually sickens me. I would love to watch my team live all the time, but I never want to live through the Browns leaving Cleveland again. It was a horrible time for me, those three years we went without a team. By the way, how did Cleveland go just three years without the NFL and Los Angeles is at 17 and counting?

Why They Will Move Here: Because they want me to see them eight times a year. (I don’t do preseason games, thanks).

Why Not: Because it’s never going to happen.

Odds: 15,000,000,000,000-1 and growing every day.

Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go get six or seven part-time jobs before a team comes to town. Do you have any idea how much NFL season tickets cost?”

Berkshire Beauty Swaps for Record £140m

Power.com — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 12:58:07 +0000

Park Place, near Henley-on-Thames sold for £140 million

It is rumored that a Russian billionaire coughed up £140m for the ultra-swish Park Place, a nifty little pied-a-terre tucked along the banks of Henley-on-Thames.

With over 30,000 sq. ft. of living space the centuries old pile sports 10 bedrooms (each with ensuite facilities), a spa complex, a cinema and a crack security system to keep away the lookie-loos. It also has stables for the polo ponies, a riverside boathouse, an 18th century Grecian grotto and its own helipad, perfect for zipping in for those late night rendezvous.

A Case Could Be Made For… Philip Anschutz or Ed Roski

Power.com — Sun, 14 Aug 2011 18:30:41 +0000

Philip Anschutz

Phil Anschutz is the grand poobah of AEG Worldwide, owner of 120+ international entertainment venues including the Staples Center in Los Angeles, The 02 arena in London and the Home Depot Center Olympic Training site in Carson, CA. He would seem to be a perfect candidate to incorporate a bit of power into his stable of companies.

His sports and entertainment conglomerate also includes an eclectic portfolio of corporations including car accessories, consumer electronics, home products, industrial products & services, power solutions & energy, power tools, telecommunications and water treatment products.

Anschutz has been jockeying to bring professional football back to LA. His goal was given a hefty boost when the Los Angeles city council unanimously agreed to his plans to build a new NFL stadium at the old convention center site. While it still isn’t a slam dunk Anschutz certainly seems to have the edge.

With such a big piggy bank (est. $7.5 billion) Phil and his chief lieutenant, Tim Lieweke, have the wherewithal to exercise a ton of options. Here’s my take on how Anschutz could profit from harnessing the power of Power.com:

1. He could consolidate his power solutions and energy companies under one moniker. It’s not the sexiest application but it could prove useful in establishing another internationally recognized brand, or;

2. He should nix the old Rams name and the love’em or hate’em Raiders and name the new Los Angeles NFL franchise the Los Angeles Power.

It has a nice ring to it especially since one of the teams to potentially relocate to the new stadium is the San Diego Chargers.

Los Angeles Power?

They could still keep the colors and the infamous lightning bolt logo but instead of fans going to Chargers.com, they would go to the newly established Power.com. Sounds like a match made in heaven.

But not so fast…

It seems that Herr Anschutz isn’t the only SoCal billionaire with his sights set on bringing the gridiron goliaths back to the left coast. Even though they are friends and have been doing business deals for over 30 years, cross-town rival and head of Majestic Realty, Ed Roski has his own vision of where the “Los Angeles” NFL team should situate.

Ed Roski

Of course it’s smack dab in the middle of his 600-acre property not unadjacent to the Pomona Freeway and the 605 and within spitting distance of the burbs of Industry, Walnut and Diamond Bar.

Eschewing tailgating that would have be held far and wide and in downtown underground parking lots if Anschutz got the final nod, Roski reasons that to get the true NFL experience you have to have lots of open space where over-refreshed tailgaters can fire up the barbeques and throw frisbees with impunity. Besides, it’s pretty dicey getting the old Winnebago into some of those small (and muy expensive) parking spaces.

If any of you Power.com readers are personal friends with Anschutz, Tim Lieweke or Ed Roski, get on the horn ASAP and give them the heads up. They’ll thank you later and maybe even spring for a pair of seasons tickets.

NB: AEG has penned a stadium naming deal with Farmers Insurance. Should AEG prevail the new digs will be called Farmers Field.

Unfortunately, and likely due to the scarcity of premium domain names suitable for this venture, Ed Roski’s group have elected to use the very long and potentially problematic losangelesfootballstadium.com as their working domain. Try typing that into your mobile without making any errors.

Methinks that the Los Angeles Power – playing at Power Stadium makes much more sense and the creative “experts” that came up with the current name should seek immediate medical attention.

Inspiration Comes From…

Power.com — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 22:54:51 +0000

Inspiration is found in many an unusual place. Some find inspiration in the words of great orators – politicians, celebrities, sports heroes, motivational speakers, business leaders. Some find inspiration from religion. Some like to read books, watch documentaries, listen to inspirational tapes and music. Others find inspiration a lot closer to home from friends, neighbors and family.

Now there's an idea...

I vividly recall reading the local newspaper (Brantford Expositor, circa 1983) and saw an article about 3 young guys who strapped a paper shredder into a van and drove it to local businesses and shredded their outdated confidential information. For whatever reason, I couldn’t sleep that night. I was ecstatic about the potential for my own mobile paper shredding business.

That eventually led to the founding of Proshred Security, the company widely recognized as the primary innovator and model for today’s mobile shredding industry.

Many entrepreneurs come from humble beginnings. Either by luck or by being a privileged member of the lucky sperm club but more likely, by hard work, persistence and sheer gumption, they became wealthy beyond their wildest dreams.

Bob Parsons - GoDaddy.com

Bob Parsons is one of those guys. He recently sold a chunk of his GoDaddy.com empire to Verisign and watched his wad of bills swell into the billions of dollars. (Some would say that his bankroll now approximates the size as his massive ego).

But nobody gave Bob anything. Through a combination of maniacal hucksterism and a Midas touch to inspire some of the world’s most beautifully endowed women to get naked to shill his domains and “hosting” services, he created the largest domain registry in the world. By his own admission he did it by following Bob Parsons^® 16 Rules for Success in Business and Life in General.

He wasn’t satisfied like the rest of us who might have one key tenet that guides us when we’re troubled or in doubt – or even 2 or 3.

Nope. Bob needed 16.

But if you’re like me, I think that every one of them has some value. There is a kernel of truth in each one. Some may seem like motherhood statements but take the ones that inspire you most and use them to your fullest advantage.

1.	Get and stay out of your comfort zone.
	I believe that not much happens of any significance when we’re in our comfort zone. I hear people say, “But I’m concerned about security.” My response to that is simple: “Security is for cadavers.”
2.	Never give up.
	Almost nothing works the first time it’s attempted. Just because what you’re doing does not seem to be working, doesn’t mean it won’t work. It just means that it might not work the way you’re doing it. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it, and you wouldn’t have an opportunity.
3.	When you’re ready to quit, you’re closer than you think.
	There’s an old Chinese saying that I just love, and I believe it is so true. It goes like this: “The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed.”
4.	With regard to whatever worries you, not only accept the worst thing that could happen, but make it a point to quantify what the worst thing could be.
	Very seldom will the worst consequence be anywhere near as bad as a cloud of “undefined consequences.” My father would tell me early on, when I was struggling and losing my shirt trying to get Parsons Technology going, “Well, Robert, if it doesn’t work, they can’t eat you.”
5.	Focus on what you want to have happen.
	Remember that old saying, “As you think, so shall you be.”
6.	Take things a day at a time.
	No matter how difficult your situation is, you can get through it if you don’t look too far into the future, and focus on the present moment. You can get through anything one day at a time.
7.	Always be moving forward.
	Never stop investing. Never stop improving. Never stop doing something new. The moment you stop improving your organization, it starts to die. Make it your goal to be better each and every day, in some small way. Remember the Japanese concept of Kaizen. Small daily improvements eventually result in huge advantages.
8.	Be quick to decide.
	Remember what General George S. Patton said: “A good plan violently executed today is far and away better than a perfect plan tomorrow.”
9.	Measure everything of significance.
	I swear this is true. Anything that is measured and watched, improves.
10.	Anything that is not managed will deteriorate.
	If you want to uncover problems you don’t know about, take a few moments and look closely at the areas you haven’t examined for a while. I guarantee you problems will be there.
11.	Pay attention to your competitors, but pay more attention to what you’re doing.
	When you look at your competitors, remember that everything looks perfect at a distance. Even the planet Earth, if you get far enough into space, looks like a peaceful place.
12.	Never let anybody push you around.
	In our society, with our laws and even playing field, you have just as much right to what you’re doing as anyone else, provided that what you’re doing is legal.
13.	Never expect life to be fair.
	Life isn’t fair. You make your own breaks. You’ll be doing good if the only meaning fair has to you, is something that you pay when you get on a bus (i.e., fare).
14.	Solve your own problems.
	You’ll find that by coming up with your own solutions, you’ll develop a competitive edge. Masura Ibuka, the co-founder of SONY, said it best: “You never succeed in technology, business, or anything by following the others.” There’s also an old Asian saying that I remind myself of frequently. It goes like this: “A wise man keeps his own counsel.”
15.	Don’t take yourself too seriously.
	Lighten up. Often, at least half of what we accomplish is due to luck. None of us are in control as much as we like to think we are.
16.	There’s always a reason to smile.
	Find it. After all, you’re really lucky just to be alive. Life is short. More and more, I agree with my little brother. He always reminds me: “We’re not here for a long time, we’re here for a good time!”

I’ll See Your Burj Khalifa and Raise You A … Kingdom

Power.com — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 16:11:19 +0000

Even in these unsettling economic times the ongoing pursuit of “one-upsmanship” continues unabated among the world’s billionaires. In this latest round it’s not a yacht that’s a silly millimeter longer, a more opulent Scandium-plated private jet or even an extra carat for the little lady’s “House on a Finger“.

Nossiree.

This time we’re talking towers … very tall towers. Long gone are the days when our beloved Toronto CN Tower, at a mere 553 metres tall, reigned supreme. Canada’s knee-high version of “tall” was usurped most recently by Dubai’s Burj Khalifa when it debuted in January, 2010 at 828 metres.

Kingdom Tower

Now Prince Alwaleed is raising the stakes even further with his announcement to build Kingdom Tower, the world’s tallest, in Jeddah with an over 1,000 metre Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill designed structure.

If size matters, it looks like the Saudis possess the upper hand for the foreseeable future.

(Reuters) – Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal unveiled plans on Tuesday to build the world’s tallest tower in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, signing a 4.6 billion riyal ($1.23 billion) contract with Bin Laden Group.

The proposed tower, which will rise more than 1,000 metres and take just over five years to complete, is the centrepiece of the planned Kingdom City development being built outside Jeddah by Prince Alwaleed’s Kingdom Holding.

Prince Alwaleed bin Talal

“Building this tower in Jeddah sends a financial and economic message that should not be ignored,” Prince Alwaleed told reporters. “It has a political depth to it to tell the world that we Saudis invest in our country.”

If completed, the tower will replace Dubai’s 828-metre Burj Khalifa as the tallest tower in the world. The Burj Khalifa was built by Emaar Properties for a total cost of $1.5 billion.

The tower, which is to include a hotel, serviced apartments, luxury condominiums and offices, will be designed by U.S. architecture firm Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill.

Prince Alwaleed, a nephew of Saudi King Abdullah, said the Jeddah tower would eventually top 1,000 metres, but the final height is a closely guarded secret.

Kingdom Holding shares were up 1.91 percent on the Saudi bourse at 1032 GMT.

Kingdom said a 33.35-percent-owned associate firm, Jeddah Economic Co, had been set up to build the tower. Abrar International Holding Co. will also have a 33.35-percent stake, while Bin Laden Group will have 16.63 percent, and businessman Abdurrahman Sharbatly will own 16.67 percent.

Last month, Kingdom, which holds stakes in companies such as Citigroup, reported a 21-percent rise in second-quarter net profit helped by higher income from its investments.

Source: Reuters

Sedo.com Q2 -2011 Domain Market Study

Power.com — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 12:39:58 +0000

Sedo.com, the world’s largest domain reseller, has released its 2nd quarter 2011 Domain Market Study.

“At of the end of Q2 2011, Sedo’s global Domain Marketplace now boasts over 18 million domain names listed by more than 1 million members worldwide.”

While Sedo boasts thousands of sales it’s notable that their 3 highest publicly reported domain sales over the years led by Sex.com, Vodka.com and more recently Gambling.com – have averaged over $6 million dollars.