The Beginning of EBay

If there is one place to shop around the world it’s not the mall, boutique, or even that huge warehouse that fulfills almost all the needs of the buyer. That is because even a building could not fit all the merchandise sold on the racks. EBay is by far the biggest, most interactive, and most popular retailer, wholesaler, or even car dealership around. Pierre Omidyar started the site in 1995 as a small business enterprise while working for General Magic Corporation. The site was called AuctionWeb at the beginning of the production, but was soon changed due to his preference to name it after Echo Star Technology; the firm that he worked for. But that name was taken, so he shortened it up and called it EBay. Omidyar instituted small posting fees and final value fees. He invested in the expansion of the company with all the money that he made. Before he knew it, Pierre was gaining a high economic standing. Way more than his job at General Magic. After only 2 years, the site was posting more than 800,000 auctions a day. And in 1998, when the site went public, there were more than 1 million registered users. EBay was seen as an auction site for small collectibles like pez dispensers, but the category of product was soon broadened and eBay was selling anything and everything. It is no wonder it is one of the most popular websites today, and is almost grossing more than a “Fortune 500” company.

Today, eBay isn’t wasting any time thinking of new brilliant innovations for the site. Recently, eBay express was launched for the time critical need. Registered members can simply log on, order their item like checking out on an online shopping cart, and receive their item in 2-3 days. Their “Fast Shipping” and “Buy it Now” buttons have also made it more efficient and easier to shop online. Every day hundreds of new users are signing up and adding to the EBay Empire. And it’s as simple as swiping a credit card. In order to become a registered user, one must type in their residential information, their name, a credit card number, and a valid email address. In order to sign up for a sellers account, all one must do is enter a valid checking account. After that it takes just I click of a button to bid on anything.

And every click is music to eBay’s ears. Every time the price of an auction increases, eBay makes money. It costs any were from 25 cents to ten dollars to post an auction depending on the number of pictures and any other extra functions that can increase sales. After the item is sold, the item is charged a final value fee. This final value fee is where customers forget where their money is going. 5% of the first 25 dollars is charged, plus 3% of the remaining amount. With over $700 dollars worth of merchandise sold every second, that brings in a lot of profits. Although it doesn’t cost money for the buyers to bid on an item, it sure doesn’t end up costing them nothing in the long run. The 65 million current registered users are what make the company so rich.

Entrepreneurs in record numbers are setting up shop on eBay, according to a new survey conducted for eBay by ACNielsen International Research, a leading research firm. More than 724,000 Americans report that eBay is their primary or secondary source of income. In addition to these professional eBay sellers, another 1.5 million individuals say they supplement their income by selling on eBay, according to the July 2005 survey.

EBay is currently worth over a billion dollars, and that number is increasing dramatically every day. Their new Hershey’s Get It promotion is increasing their registered user level to new heights. By selling candy bars with codes that are redeemable at their site for great prizes, eBay is providing its auction technology. This is just one aspect that is so unique to its company. EBay is built on 15 servers located in different parts of the United States. With their sharp tactics and highly realistic goals, the company has set up in 5 countries including the United States. It has almost no limitation on its growth, besides the chance that all the money in the world runs out, because with the EBay Company, the sky is the limit to its potential.