Squeezing out that last little bit of cream.

CONTACT:

Cliff Kurtzman or Rob Van Slyke The Tenagra Corporation Houston, Texas 281-480-6300 e-mail: y2kauction@year2000.com

Peter de Jager de Jager and Company Limited Bramption, Ontario, Canada 905-792-8706 e-mail: y2kauction@year2000.com

Year2000.com Goes on the Auction Block on eBay

Historical domain name up for grabs as new millennium ticks in

HOUSTON, TX, Dec. 22, 1999--/Y2K WIRE/--As the calendar rolls over into a new century, the world will be watching as the impact of the Y2K bug is revealed. Meanwhile, as the final seconds of 1999 draw to a close, the Web site that first drew international attention to the notorious computer glitch will be experiencing a historic event of its own--the sale of its domain name.

Starting on December 23, 1999, one of the most significant domain names in the history of the Internet will go on sale at eBay: Year2000.com. And at precisely 12:00 a.m. on January 1, 2000, the auction will end.

The auction can be found on eBay at: http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=225003545

The domain name is being sold by The Year2000.com Partnership, a joint venture between Canadian computer consultant Peter de Jager and The Tenagra Corporation, a Houston-based Internet marketing agency. The minimum bid accepted will be for $1 million. The current record for the sale of a domain name is $7.5 million, which was paid in November 1999 to Houstonian Marc Ostrofsky for the purchase of the Business.com name.

De Jager and Tenagra launched the Year 2000 Information Center on the Internet in May 1995 to bring awareness to what became known as the "millennium bug." The site quickly became one of the most dramatic success stories in advertising-supported Internet publishing. It was one of the first online publications to operate in the black and eventually built traffic of more than 800,000 home page views in a single month. Currently, Year2000.com has more than 90,000 subscribers to its free bi-monthly newsletter.

According to Tenagra CEO Cliff Kurtzman, the valuation of the Year2000.com domain name is based on past offers which the company turned down because the site's mission was incomplete. "But now that this goal has been met, a new owner of the site will be able to put the highly visible domain name to new use. More than 25,000 hyperlinks currently exist on the Web linking directly to Year2000.com."

Kurtzman expects that, with the uniqueness, historical significance and timeliness of the domain, as well as its past traffic and visibility, Year2000.com will be highly coveted by organizations wishing to capitalize on the new millennium. De Jager confesses to feeling a bit sentimental about the sale. Nevertheless, he says, "The Year 2000 Information Center existed for a single purpose--to create awareness of the Year 2000 computer problem and to get people to take the problem seriously. To the best of our ability we achieved that goal. Year2000.com has served its purpose well and in the last year of the millennium it can be put to better use. I hope we can find it a good home."

Kurtzman said that public and business awareness of Y2K issues throughout the U.S. is high. "With 1999 drawing to an end, we can say without question that the site has succeeded in its educational mission. Now that we have worked so hard on the project over the past five years our mission is complete and we can enjoy the proceeds of the sale."

Additional details on the domain name auction, along with information on a $10,000 reward being offered for suggestions leading to a buyer, are available at http://www.year2000.com/auction . If you wish to receive updates on the status and progress of the domain name sale, please send a blank email to the address auction-join@year2000.com .

-- for real (for@real.com), December 23, 1999

Answers

"And at precisely 12:00 a.m. on January 1, 2000, the auction will end." Ah...but ebay is shutting down for rollover!

-- Rachel Gibson (rgibson@hotmail.com), December 23, 1999.

What am I bid for www.Kook2000.com? Some rice and beans??

Kook2K

-- Y2Kook (Y2Kook@usa.net), December 23, 1999.

Pop Quiz .... (Hoffy, care to participate?)

Does this make DeJaeger someone "profiting" off Y2K preparation and readiness? Or is it okay because he has "changed his mind"?

Too bad Ed didn't think of this. Too bad I didn't think of this. De Jaeger is a skunk but I have no problem with this move at all. He has always been a shrewd marketer. Eh?

-- BigDog (BigDog@duffer.com), December 23, 1999.

Does this make DeJaeger someone "profiting" off Y2K preparation and readiness?

No.

-- (duh@duh.duh), December 23, 1999.

No bids yet:

HotLink to the Ebay page

-- me (not@here.me), December 23, 1999.

Okay, I'll start the bidding!

Forget about the "million dollar" reserve bid stipulation - a million dollars won't buy you much gas and chow after 12 a.m. on January 1st, 2000.

No,I'm willing to offer real currency - two cans of Campbell's condensed soup All that Peter de Jager has said that the average person will need to safely make it through Y2K!

He can even choose his favourite varieties.

And, since he'll have to share this business largesse with his Houston partners, I'll even generously bid against myself and make it four cans of Campbell's soup!

Anyone willing to top that?

-- John Whitley (jwhitley@inforamp.net), December 24, 1999.

I hear he also owns www.gimmedamoney.com and www.slimeytoad.com ...

-- Andy (2000EOD@prodigy.net), December 24, 1999.

I guess this proposal is serious, however, he should have put it up for auction many months ago. I think his Year2000.com is nothing more than a White Elephant. It's like selling rain coats in the middle of summer.

-- So it goes (Soitgoesss@soitgoesss.xcom), December 24, 1999.