>"Once famous" websites are rarely ever thrown away completely. They are often scrapped for parts, and any nugget of value that still remains, is sold to the highest bidder.
Even sites that are completely healthy and thriving sometimes disappear just because someone drives a dumptruck full of cash into the lobby.
I once turned down a spammer who wanted to buy one of my site's e-mail lists (very targeted, high-value). When I turned him down, he approached my partners and tried to buy the whole site. He told them he was going to shut the site down and just use the e-mail list.
Even sites that are completely healthy and thriving sometimes disappear just because someone drives a dumptruck full of cash into the lobby.
I once turned down a spammer who wanted to buy one of my site's e-mail lists (very targeted, high-value). When I turned him down, he approached my partners and tried to buy the whole site. He told them he was going to shut the site down and just use the e-mail list.