Domain Group

Last updated

Domain Holdings Australia Ltd
Domain Group
Company type Subsidiary
IndustryReal estate
Founded1999
Headquarters100 Harris Street, ,
Australia
Key people
Jason Pellegrino [1] (CEO)
Brands
  • domain.com.au
  • commercialrealestate.com.au
  • allhomes.com.au
  • pricefinder.com.au
RevenueIncrease2.svg A$289.6 million (2021) [2]
Number of employees
900+
Parent CoStar Group
Website domain.com.au

Domain Holdings Australia Ltd (or simply Domain Group) is an Australian digital property portal and associated real-estate industry business. It is best known for its real-estate website domain.com.au, and also owns the brands commercialrealestate.com.au and allhomes.com.au.

Contents

History

It was founded by Fairfax Media, when the publisher branded their real-estate sections in print with the Domain brand and first established an online presence in 1999. [3] Until Domain was listed as a public company on the Australian Securities Exchange, it was its wholly owned subsidiary for eighteen years.

In February 2015, the Australian Financial Review published an article highlighting Credit Suisse analyst expectations of a likely float of the Domain in the future, and attributed an AUD $1.3 billion valuation to the group. [4]

On February 21, 2017, trading in Fairfax shares was suspended [5] until half yearly results and an announcement of intent to turn Domain into a listed entity were announced. [6] Domain Group was widely seen to "prop up" Fairfax revenues, as the company's publishing divisions were struggling. [7] [8]

Domain Group began trading on the Australian Securities Exchange on 16 November 2017. [9] [10] Having acquired a 20% shareholding in the firm, CoStar Group launched a takeover offer in February 2025. [11] [12]

In May 2025, CoStar entered an agreement to acquire 100% of the firm for A$3 billion. [13] On August 27, CoStar announced that it had completed the purchase of the Australian company. [14]

Portfolio

The Domain Group is best known for its real-estate portal domain.com.au, which is Australia's second largest real-estate marketing business, with 90% market penetration. [15] It competes directly with market leader REA Group, running real-estate.com.au, which is majority-owned by Nine rival News Corp Australia. [16] [17]

As of August 2023, the Domain Group consists of a portfolio of businesses [18] including but not limited to:

Cricket sponsorship

In June 2018, Domain Group were announced as platinum partner [19] of the Australian men's cricket team. [20] Under the deal, Domain became the presenting partner of men's test cricket over four years, which included the Ashes, and became the official real estate partner of Cricket Australia. [21]

References

  1. Mason, Max; Whyte, Jemima (3 July 2018). "Domain taps Google's Jason Pellegrino as new CEO". Australian Financial Review .
  2. "Domain Holdings Australia Limited 2021 Full Year Results Announcement"" (PDF). shareholders.domain.com.au. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  3. "domain.com.au: Property from Every Angle". web.archive.org. Archived from the original on 27 November 1999. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  4. "Fairfax still likely to float Domain, Credit Suisse says | afr.com". afr.com. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  5. "Fairfax shares in trading halt ahead of Domain announcement". The Australian .
  6. "Fairfax Media confirms Domain spin-off".
  7. Meade, Amanda (19 February 2016). "Fairfax Media posts $27.4m profit despite lower print advertising revenue". The Guardian . Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  8. Ward, Miranda (19 February 2016). "Domain drives growth for Fairfax as company continues on path from print to digital". Mumbrella . Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  9. Bennett, Lindsay (16 November 2017). "Domain valued at $2.2 billion after listing on ASX". Ad News. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  10. "Domain listed on the ASX at noon". ABC News . 16 November 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.
  11. Thompson, Sarah; Sood, Kanika; Rapaport, Emma (20 February 2025). "American real estate giant CoStar eyes Domain takeover bid" . Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 10 May 2025.
  12. Domain receives Unxolicited, Non-Binding Indicative Proposal from CoStar Group Domain 21 February 2025
  13. Akhand, Himanshi; Chatterjee, Rishav (9 May 2025). "CoStar to buy Australia's Domain in $1.9 billion deal, eyes REA's market dominance". Reuters. Retrieved 10 May 2025.
  14. "CoStar Group Completes Acquisition of Domain, Ushering in a New Era of Innovation for Australia's Property Market". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  15. "Domain starts year with big subscription growth – REB". rebonline.com.au. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  16. "Is Domain.com.au catching up to REA Group Limited? | Motley Fool Australia". fool.com.au. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  17. "Domain says it's 'no longer No 2'". The Australian. Retrieved 29 April 2015.
  18. "Portfolio- Domain Group". domain.com.au.
  19. AAP. "Cricket Australia signs naming rights deal". cricket.com.au. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  20. Duke, Jennifer. "'Domain Ashes': Real estate group partners with Cricket Australia". Sydney Morning Herald . Fairfax Media. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
  21. McDonnell, Josh (25 June 2018). "Cricket Australia continues sponsor rebuild with new Domain deal". AdNews. Retrieved 10 October 2018.