America Online and online auction firm eBay today announced
the signing of a three-year, multimillion dollar agreement under which eBay
will provide auction services to AOL members.
Under terms of the agreement, eBay will be the exclusive person-to-person
auction service in the general merchandise category of the AOL Classifieds area and in several areas of the hobbies section of the AOL Interest channel for a minimum of one year, and is also available at keyword: eBay.
AOL will receive guaranteed payments from eBay totaling $12 million, the companies stated.
The eBay service is designed for users interested in posting items for sale in the appropriate category on eBay. eBay said it facilitates the online auction for that item, and once the auction is complete and the winning bid identified, the winning bidder and the seller contact each other via e-mail
to complete the transaction.
“More and more our members are realizing the ease and convenience of buying
and selling online,” said Barry Schuler, President of AOL Interactive
Services. “Thanks to our expanded relationship with eBay, AOL members now
have even easier access to their very own person-to-person trading
community, ensuring they get the best possible price for their items, and
giving buyers a convenient way to browse and shop.”
Currently, eBay claims to have more than 600,000 items for auction, and as of June 30, 1998 had more than 70,000 items for auction added daily by its more than 850,000 registered users. AOL last week reported a member-base of over 13 million.
