In court papers filed this week, its bankrupt owner, Escom LLC., named Clover Holdings Ltd as the successful bidder for the domain name. Escom reportedly bought the domain name for $14 million in 2006.

The deal will go before a bankruptcy judge for approval on Oct. 27. A representative at domain name marketplace Sedo.com said the sex.com domain name was the most expensive ever sold.

"It still holds the record for being the most valued domain name," said a Sedo.com spokesman said Friday.

The auctions of simple domain names are seen as rare opportunities for Internet entrepreneurs. An auction for the www.pizza.com domain name in 2008 attracted bids above $2.5 million.