Selenium dichloride reacted with acrylic acid, ethyl acrylate, and acrylonitrile at -20A degrees C in a regionselective fashion to give the corresponding anti-Markovnikov adducts. This reaction was used as a basis to develop an efficient procedure for the synthesis of new functionalized selenides in nearly quantitative yields. Raising the temperature to -10A degrees C or ambient led to loss of regioselectivity and formation of mixtures of addition products at both alpha- and beta-positions of the double bond.