Press Release: The IRS Issues
a “No Change Letter” for DomainMart’s Appraisal
Summary: The IRS officially accepts
DomainMart’s domain name appraisals for tax-deductible charitable
contributions.
Berkeley, CA (September 22, 2010) – DomainMart,
a leading provider of quantitative and analytical domain-name services,
is now good enough for the IRS when it comes to providing on-target
valuations of domain name–based charitable contributions.
DomainMart’s valuation of a recent charitable
contribution was flagged by the IRS and subjected to extra scrutiny.
Result: A “No Change Letter” in which the IRS spells
out its agreement with DomainMart’s findings. The IRS says
it accepts the deduction as a legitimate claim, without any modification
or restriction on value.
“This is a victory for the entire domain
name industry,” says Alex Tajirian, DomainMart’s CEO.
“Prior to this IRS finding, industry insiders and outsiders
mocked appraisals as a process of pulling rabbits out of a hat.
No more!”
A charitable donation to a nonprofit organization
that receives government assistance can benefit the receiving party
and society as a whole. One example is donating domain names to
relevant organizations. In contrast, a large number of charitable
donations have private benefits for the donating party but are socially
useless because they decrease the government’s income without
any offsetting benefits.
The ruling is “proof that domain names are
a valuable intangible asset and that their value can be legitimately
quantified,” adds Tajirian. Long-term, he predicts, the ruling
will increase domain name prices and create much-needed liquidity.
About DomainMart
DomainMart, an industry leader since its launch in 1996, provides
domain-name secondary market products and consulting services, including
valuation, corporate portfolio analysis and protection, brand naming,
monetization, and private investment analyses.
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