I won’t bore you with the details from TRAFFIC New York since Ron will certainly provide a great recap, and there are a few others covering the event. I want to give you inside access to the conference, and share some rumors I’ve heard over the last couple of days that are probably not true.

- Mike and Judi Berkens brought Bandit, their cute, cancer-survivor dog to the show. Conference organizers required Mike and Judi to pay the full General Admission fee of $1,995. Bandit also spoke on two panels.

- Monte Cahn couldn’t make it to the show because he injured his leg during a dance off with Rick Latona. Rick pulled out a sick move, and Monte tore his ACL – ouch! Now Rick Latona Auctions will be the sole auctioneer at TRAFFIC shows in 2010.

- This was the first TRAFFIC sell-out ever. In attendance, there were 75,000 thought leaders (from 32 countries), 4 heads of state, 48 members of the US congress, 178 CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, 8 billionaires, 4 media moguls, professors from 60 universities from around the world, and you. (They were all here to see Owen.)

- Representatives from Microsoft and several other large companies were in attendance with some great branded giveaways. They were handing out official cease and desist letters.

- I almost wasn’t permitted entry to the show. Apparently they have a minimum height requirement. I was also carded at the bar, despite my receding hair line.

- Lonnie Borck didn’t have Internet access during one day of the conference, and sales at Snapnames and NameJet were down 39%.

Today is somewhat of a bittersweet day in domain auction history, as it marks the final Moniker Live Auction to be held at a TRAFFIC show for the foreseeable future. Moniker was the pioneer in live domain auctions, and they’ve scored tens of millions of dollars in TRAFFIC auction domain sales over the years.

This afternoon at 4pm EST, Moniker will hold its live auction, with simultaneous bidding online at Snapnames. As you can see, there are some great domain names in the auction. Some of my favorites are bolded below (I have no domain names in the live auction).

10 CollegePrepClasses.com $501-$1000
20 PartTimeHelp.com $1001-$2500
30 CustomBoots.com No Reserve
40 TennisCamp.com $2501 – $5000
50 FramedPrints.com No Reserve
60 IceCreamMaker.com $5,001 – $10,000
70 TattooParlor.com $5,001 – $10,000
80 SchoolDresses.com $1001-$2500
90 ImportedLeather.com $2501 – $5000
100 ImportedMarble.com $2501 – $5000
110 Organic.info $5,001 – $10,000
120 SiliconeGel.com $5,001 – $10,000
130 SwineFlu.net $5,001 – $10,000
140 LNN.com $5,001 – $10,000
150 Business.cm $5,001 – $10,000
160 EnergyDrinks.org No Reserve
170 SportFishingBoat.com $1001-$2500
180 HorrorStories.com $5,001 – $10,000
190 ClothesDryer.com $2501 – $5000
200 SmartLink.com $10,001 – $25,000
210 EScripts.com $10,001 – $25,000
220 Pornos.net $10,001 – $25,000
230 Alimony.org $10,001 – $25,000
240 Aging.com $50,001 – $100,000
250 Minority.com $50,001 – $100,000
260 AutoClassifieds.com $50,001 – $100,000
270 Clarinet.com $50,001 – $100,000
280 NewYorkers.com No Reserve
290 CollegeEducation.com $250,001 – $500,000
300 Dropout.com $10,001 – $25,000
310 HonorRole.com No Reserve
320 Tested.com $2501 – $5000
330 Education.cm $5,001 – $10,000
340 GoodTeachers.com $1001-$2500
350 NYC.info $10,001 – $25,000
360 GraduateClasses.com $501-$1000
370 NewYorkSingles.com $25,001 – $50,000
380 NY.biz No Reserve
390 VD.com $250,001 – $500,000
400 NoseJobs.com $25,001 – $50,000
410 Lung.com $25,001 – $50,000
420 PregnancyCenter.com $25,001 – $50,000
430 Flatulence.com $10,001 – $25,000
440 ChestPains.com $10,001 – $25,000
450 ColdRemedies.com $10,001 – $25,000
460 MedicalPractice.com $5,001 – $10,000
470 ConciergeDoctor.com $1001-$2500
480 H1n1FluVaccines.com $1-$500
490 UsTrademarks.com $5,001 – $10,000
500 TrademarkLawyers.com $5,001 – $10,000
510 DivorcePlanning.com $10,001 – $25,000
520 Mediation.com $100,001 – $250,000
530 Arbitration.com $100,001 – $250,000
540 Zimbabwe.com $100,001 – $250,000
550 SanBernardino.com $50,001 – $100,000
560 CityTour.com $25,001 – $50,000
570 Holiday.org $10,001 – $25,000
580 IsleOfCapri.com $10,001 – $25,000
590 Arizona.info $5,001 – $10,000
600 DiscountAirfares.net $5,001 – $10,000
610 EuropeanVacation.com $2501 – $5000
620 FamilyVacation.com $50,001 – $100,000
630 SeattleRestaurant.com $1001-$2500
640 UsedTools.com $50,001 – $100,000
650 PowerSaws.com $2501 – $5000
660 Saws.com $50,001 – $100,000
670 ComputerRecyclers.com $5,001 – $10,000
680 ComputerChip.com $5,001 – $10,000
690 Hockey.org $10,001 – $25,000
700 DataCenters.com $100,001 – $250,000
710 QB.com $100,001 – $250,000
720 GameTickets.com $50,001 – $100,000
730 VolleyBalls.com $10,001 – $25,000
740 ElectricGolfCarts.com $10,001 – $25,000
750 FishingLine.com $10,001 – $25,000
760 SkiLodge.com $5,001 – $10,000
770 ExerciseClass.com $5,001 – $10,000
780 FantasyStats.com $2501 – $5000
790 GolfCaps.com $1001-$2500
800 OK.biz No Reserve
810 LocalGasPrices.com $5,001 – $10,000
815 Pesos.com $25,001 – $50,000
820 40.com $100,001 – $250,000
830 FreeSex.com $1MM – $5MM
840 ContractorsCoverage.com No Reserve
850 FarmInsurance.com $100,001 – $250,000
860 TermLifeRates.com $2501 – $5000
870 CamperInsurance.com $5,001 – $10,000
880 Insurance.cm $5,001 – $10,000
890 LendMoney.com $1001-$2500
900 FinancialProducts.com $5,001 – $10,000
910 I.biz No Reserve
920 SecondMortgage.com $100,001 – $250,000
930 Townhouses.com $100,001 – $250,000
940 Borrowers.com $25,001 – $50,000
950 MortgageModification.com $10,001 – $25,000
960 FreeEstimate.com $10,001 – $25,000
970 FreeFinancing.com $10,001 – $25,000
980 NewCarQuotes.com $5,001 – $10,000
990 Tube.com $1MM – $5MM
1000 HD.biz No Reserve
1010 TemporaryStorage.com $25,001 – $50,000
1020 CreditTips.com $25,001 – $50,000
1030 BostonTerriers.com $25,001 – $50,000
1040 Debentures.com $25,001 – $50,000
1050 Raspberry.com $25,001 – $50,000
1060 RecipeBooks.com $5,001 – $10,000
1070 EZ.biz No Reserve
1080 CostumeRentals.com $5,001 – $10,000
1090 Vultures.com $25,001 – $50,000
1100 IStream.com $10,001 – $25,000
1110 CollectibleCoins.com No Reserve
1120 Photo.com $1MM – $5MM
1130 PearlEarrings.com $50,001 – $100,000
1140 PetProducts.net $10,001 – $25,000
1150 VoiceNavigation.com $501-$1000
1160 SingleMen.com $100,001 – $250,000
1170 Stuff.com $1MM – $5MM
1180 Introduction.com $100,001 – $250,000
1190 StampCollectors.com $5,001 – $10,000
1200 OfficeSupply.com $500,001 – $750,000
1210 WoolSuits.com $1001-$2500
1220 Maintaining.com $1001-$2500
1230 EBuy.com $250,001 – $500,000
1240 PetBoarding.com $25,001 – $50,000
1250 MultiVitamins.com $25,001 – $50,000
1260 OrganicBabyFood.com $10,001 – $25,000
1270 BrassBeds.com $10,001 – $25,000
1280 OnlineWork.com $5,001 – $10,000
1290 WallOvens.com $2501 – $5000
1300 Originals.com $25,001 – $50,000
1310 StockMarket.info $2501 – $5000
1320 LincolnMemorial.com $2501 – $5000
1330 Loans.dk $1001-$2500
1340 Fail.org $1001-$2500
1350 Stage.com $250,001 – $500,000
1360 WineCellar.com $100,001 – $250,000
1370 SecurityNetwork.com $1001-$2500
1380 EarlyEdition.com $1001-$2500
1390 AfricanAmericans.com $250,001 – $500,000
1400 IBill.com $250,001 – $500,000
1410 MedicalExam.com $25,001 – $50,000
1420 HalloweenParty.com $10,001 – $25,000
1430 NannyCams.com $10,001 – $25,000
1440 WiseMen.com $2501 – $5000
1450 VinylCleaners.com $2501 – $5000
1460 EarnMoney.com $250,001 – $500,000
1470 Bands.com $100,001 – $250,000
1480 HouseRentals.com $100,001 – $250,000
1490 Brakes.net $2501 – $5000

New York based Internet media company, Acme Media, LLC, had a big day yesterday. Keith Levenson, CEO of Acme, attended yesterday’s Rick Latona TRAFFIC auction intent on one thing – winning Rio.com. By the end of the afternoon, the company prevailed in the auction, winning Rio.com for $450,000. The company plans to build a comprehensive website about the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro.

“Rio.com wonderfully complements Acme’s portfolio and will play a vital role in our strategic plan.  We are eager to implement our innovative business plan and make this one of the premiere destinations on the web,” said Levenson. “We are also grateful for all the shared excitement and well-wishes from our colleagues, clients and competitors which, coincidentally, demonstrates the class, character and professionalism of our peers within and without the domain industry.  Thank you to all and all I have to say is “stay-tuned and hold on to your seatbelts!“‘

In addition to scoring this great domain name at auction, the company achieved another milestone later on in the evening. Acme’s adult toy store, Vibrator.com, which pulls in seven figures in annual sales, had a successful re-design and re-launch. I know how stressful a re-launch can be, and I’m glad to see that it went well.

In addition to these great domain properties, the company also owns Audio.com, Devices.com, Therapist.com, HomeImprovement.com, Mortgage.net, and many other great domain names.

Congrats to Keith and his team at Acme.