There’s another strange twist in the history of Sex.com. It’s been stolen and returned and then sold and now it’s gone in to foreclosure.  If it’s popular subject matter didn’t make this name interesting, surely the history and ongoing story behind Sex.com makes it one of the most popular domain names ever. The domain name that has been the subject of a 10 year lawsuit and 2 books is set to be listed to be sold at auction next month.

The current owners, Escom, paid $14 million for the domain in January 2006. The website features news, horoscopes and shops portal at present. However the price it paid for the domain name might have been too high. The company’s ownership of the asset is being foreclosed, “for default in the payment of debt and performance of obligations owed.”

To meet the criteria to bid at the site’s auction, buyers “must appear at the auction with a certified bank check in the amount of $1,000,000.” Apparently, this is not going to be a cheap date. The website draws 120,000 unique visitors per month for nothing other than the name, but truthfully, that’s not massive web traffic volume. Nevertheless, with that name it might have potential as a money spinner for some thrusting business group with a bulky financial portfolio and ambitious plans.

Escom purchased Sex.com when there was a lot of money in the economy, so we don’t expect any outfit to be dumb enough to bid that high again.