Bid on the wild side

Aucor Wildlife Auctions (AWA) is set to revolutionise the livestock and game auction industry through the addition of a new online, real-time auction platform. The first AWA physical auction is scheduled for April 12 while the industry first, dual online/physical auction will be take place on May 24.

“Aucor prides itself in being the leading auction business in the country and believes that through repeated innovation and investment we continue to bring unrivalled auction experiences to our clients. The launch of this extremely exciting platform is testament to our pioneering spirit and reinforces the position of Aucor at the forefront of the cyber-auction arena,” says Darren Winterstein of Aucor.

Taking the business beyond the online world, AWA has acquired some of the largest and most well-known game pens in Vaalwater, Limpopo where physical auctions will be held. This sizeable investment in both the online and physical world is a clear reflection of the importance and intent that the JV partners place in making Aucor Wildlife Auctions leaders in the game and livestock auction industry.

AWA boasts custom made, state of the art online auction software which is designed to specifically address the inherent difficulties faced by live video streaming in South Africa. As is well-known, both audio and video streaming lag times are notoriously problematic in Africa due to bandwidth constraints and to this end the software is designed to provide live, real time, text based on-screen bids.

The system that has been developed ensures that online bidders are not subjected to any lag for real-time bidding which could result in them losing out in an auction. Furthermore, the system provides clients with the ability to switch video streaming on or off during the auction for an enhanced user experience when required. All Aucor Wildlife Auctions with effect from May 24 will be webcast live on the day with real-time online bidding on the live internet based auction platform

“Our offering will be a first for South Africa. The auctions will have both a physical and an online presence, and they will occur at a fixed facility owned and operated by AWA. This allows us to provide the very best possible auction experience to the game and livestock industry,” says Johan du Toit of Wildlife Auctions.

The online platform provides a unique offering of physical auctions, accompanied by live auction video streaming and real time online bidding. One of the key benefits to the industry from this dual approach is that of providing live industry pricing related information.

Currently, industry spectators and other interested parties are subjected to waiting for pricing levels and auction data to be released by the auction house. With the launch of the new platform, AWA is addressing the need for instant industry data in the ever more digitally driven business environment.

“We are truly proud to announce such an exciting platform to complement our existing range of offerings. We have found the perfect partners in Johan and Chere du Toit and their Wildlife Auctions business; and we look forward to building Aucor Wildlife Auctions into the premier game and wildlife auction business in South Africa,” concludes Winterstein.