In his welcoming comments, conference co-founder Rick Schwartz said, "There is no doubt that we are at the epicenter of history in the making. All the titans of business across the street are crumbling and here this little tiny group of domainers is becoming the next generation of "real estate" barons. Domains may turn out to be the safest asset in the world. You can control them from anywhere at any time, you don't have to wait for the bank to open, you can move them on whim. They produce income and, if you have good ones, the value is rising. So we have a lot to be thankful for."