Starting bid: 25.0
BTCBuy it now: 60.0
BTCBid increment: 0.1
BTCEnd date and time: Saturday, March 26 2016, 11:00 AM UTC
Important:At any time
before the reserve price of 25.0BTC is met, I reserve the right to close this auction. After the reserve price is met, the auction will remain open.
Description:BTCDLC (bitcoin downloadable content) is a self-service marketplace where independent vendors can create shops to sell their digital content:
https://www.btcdlc.com/Additional information:It's pretty straightforward for sellers:
- They sign up with an email and a bitcoin wallet address.
- They link to a Dropbox account and a new BTCDLC folder is created in their Dropbox/Apps folder.
- They create shops and add items by adding them to their Dropbox and settings prices in the BTCDLC admin interface.
For buyers it's super simple, they don't even have to use an email address, though it's safer to do that because a download link is emailed to them once a transaction is confirmed.
I have too many commitments to keep running the site, much less add new features. For example, some sellers have asked for the ability to embed items for sale on other sites. This is low-hanging fruit for any new proprietor.
BTCDLC has a solid reputation. The code is all custom and it is secure.
How many users are there?There are between 250 and 500 registered sellers and more than 200 shops in the system. The app is free to use for both buyers and sellers. Buyers can optionally tip BTCDLC and sellers can optionally choose to profit share. It's not a huge revenue generator, but with some savvy marketing, it could be.
A note on pricing:I'm setting the reserve price at 25 BTC and the bid increments at 0.1 BTC. I realize this is a high price for some. But a custom blockchain app with 18 months of reputation, no security breaches, and community goodwill comes with a price tag even if it requires some business development. You could write a clone with cheap offshore development but it would still cost a substantial amount and I doubt it would have the security or performance record of BTCDLC. Even just a security audit of a new site would itself be expensive.
Here is what is up for auction:- The name BTCDLC, the domain transfer rights, and the code that runs the site.
- My help in setting up a new server to host the app. You will have to create an Amazon web services account because parts of the site are hosted on S3.
- I will hand over the Dropbox and Gmail accounts that are associated with BTCDLC so that the site can continue running.
- The current shops that are in the system can continue to operate without interruption but the order history will be deleted for privacy reasons and shop owners will be notified before the sale goes through that they will have some time to delete their shops if they wish. (Let's say seven days for this.)
Nothing is perfect, and that includes software. So if issues arise in the future, the buyer will need to either be technically proficient or have access to a programmer, because the site is being sold as is. Like they say:
THIS SOFTWARE IS SOLD BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.