How would one go about selling a good domain name and twitter handle for a failed project?
Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
41–50 of 64 posts
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#42Startups often have liquidation preferences in the fundraising contracts. This means investors get paid out first in a liquidity event before anyone else.
Imagine the founders raised $20M in exchange for 50% of the company. The founders make precisely zero if they sell the company for less than $20,000,001 because the investors get first claim to their share up to the amount they originally invested.
If the company goes out of business and the brand could be sold off for $50k, it doesn't really benefit anyone to do it. The VCs have better things to do with their time. They probably spent more than $50k researching and securing the initial investment. They are in the game of chasing 100x returns, not trying up their lawyers trying to reclaim peanuts. Plus, they don't want to sell their failed brands to someone who might sully their name by association. The founders would get nothing anyway from a small sale, so they just move on. The assets end up in limbo somewhere and no one cares enough to do anything with them while they wither and die.
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#43How would one go about selling a good domain name and twitter handle for a failed project?
Not to mention that domain names and twitter handles are worth much less money these days. gTLDs something something...
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#44I’d love to start a business buying up old band brands, licensing them out. HMU if you wanna join me
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
Company names get recycled all the time. People have short memories. I wouldn't recycle the Twitter account but the domain, for sure, if it is generic enough. https://www.fountain.com/ today is an HR company. Yesterday, it was an advice marketplace: https://techcrunch.com/2015/10/29/porch-acquires-mobile-expe... . And so on.
At the first glance I thought you meant starting a different service called Twitter.
"oh, you mean the dumpsterfire platform filled with porn bots?"
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#46Earlier quoted context omitted.
I have only one example (dont want to give any attention though) the company started maybe 5-6 years ago, lasted 3-4 years and last I checked the company sold to a "media company" who oddly just took the site and made it a generic "news" ad page. My guess is these domains can be juiced for a few $1,000 in ad revenu just from people searching the old name. So yes, they 100% do see off their domains to "media" compaine…
I know of a few people whose relatively high traffic sites domains expired for whatever reason, and the sites reappeared under new owners with some of the content recreated from archive but now with a shitload of ads.
You are right, it probably just expired, might not have been "sold".
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#47Are you asking for shits and giggles or are you looking at doing a business here?
Going to email you
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#48> Good business names and domains are always in demand, being able to acquire those together with trademarks is even more attractive as a business investment. If branded social media accounts are included, now you have a startup package that many established businesses don’t have. How could you legitimately use the brand name, domain name, or branded social media accounts of a different company? Sketchy SEO could use…
It wasn't YC, and the company is around in other non-handset markets, but Nokia phones sold today are made by an unrelated company that merely licenses the brand name.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMD_Global#Products_and_Servic...
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#49Earlier quoted context omitted.
Company names get recycled all the time. People have short memories. I wouldn't recycle the Twitter account but the domain, for sure, if it is generic enough. https://www.fountain.com/ today is an HR company. Yesterday, it was an advice marketplace: https://techcrunch.com/2015/10/29/porch-acquires-mobile-expe... . And so on.
At the first glance I thought you meant starting a different service called Twitter.
I don't know if the irony was intentional, but X.com is a recycled Musk IP and also a generic domain name!
Re: Ask HN: Do dead YC companies sell their brands/IP?
#50> Good business names and domains are always in demand, being able to acquire those together with trademarks is even more attractive as a business investment. If branded social media accounts are included, now you have a startup package that many established businesses don’t have. How could you legitimately use the brand name, domain name, or branded social media accounts of a different company? Sketchy SEO could use…
You mean like Shinola? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shinola https://www.shinola.com/ It does seem to be a shame to throw away hard-built branding, especially when much larger brands get bought and sold every day. It seems like a win to restore an old vintage brand (vintage in HN terms might be anything from the previous batch!)
This approach was cleverly used by a PC company in the 80s/90s, Packard Bell. That brand had been a radio company from the depression into the late 60s, when the company failed.
When PCs were starting to take off, parents of boomers were interested in getting a PC but unsure what to buy, so a familiar brand was attractive.
This was widely discussed in the business press at the time, and various other bramds were revived for this reason.
In the case of Shinola they aren’t reviving the brand in this fashion, but I assume they think a bit of familiarity, even as a joke, might help (I only knew Shinola from “can’t tell shit from Shinola” and only after I saw a Shinola shop a few years ago did I bother to even look it up).