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eBay Announces Agreement To Acquire Payment Enabler
SAN JOSE, Calif., May 18,1999 - eBay Inc.® (NASDAQ:EBAY; www.ebay.com) today unveiled plans to make it easier for its nearly four million members to buy and sell online. The world's largest online person-to-person trading community announced it will purchase Billpoint, Inc. Billpoint, located in Redwood City, California, facilitates person-to-person credit card payment over the Internet.
"We are committed to providing the eBay community with the simplest and easiest way to trade online," said Meg Whitman, president and chief executive officer of eBay. "Streamlining person-to-person trading is a core part of our strategy and Billpoint will offer shoppers a convenient and easy-to-use payment solution that will serve the needs of the eBay community at large."
"eBay is a recognized leader in person-to-person commerce," said Hope X. Chen, Billpoint's co-ceo and chief operating officer. "Billpoint will simplify auctions by making payments a seamless and integrated part of the trading experience."
As the pioneering online person-to-person payment enabler, Billpoint will eliminate the difficulties of dealing with paper checks and money orders. Sellers will use Billpoint to instantly accept credit cards and other forms of payment online. Buyers will use Billpoint to "buy with peace of mind." Billpoint plans to make its services available to other e-commerce sites and to individuals across the Internet.
eBay said that the agreement to purchase Billpoint and the purchase of Kruse International, a second transaction announced today, will together result in the issuance of eBay common stock worth approximately $275 million. Both will be accounted for as pooling of interest transactions. The number of shares to be issued in the transactions will be determined by a formula involving the average share price of eBay common stock during a period prior to the closing of the transactions. eBay expects that the transactions may be slightly dilutive during the remainder of 1999. Closing is subject to certain conditions, and eBay may recognize certain one-time expenses related to the transactions in the second quarter. Both transactions are expected to close during the second quarter of 1999.
Forward Looking Statement
This announcement contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the closing of this transaction. Actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, stock price movements, the Company's ability to integrate these new businesses and all of the factors that may influence future business and financial results, including those set forth in the Company's Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 1998, its form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 1999 and the Company's prospectus on Form S-1 dated April 12, 1999. All forward-looking statements are based on information available to the Company on the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update such statements.
About eBay
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading community™, pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 3.8 million registered users and over 8 million unique people visited the site in March. Currently, there are more than 1.8 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
About Billpoint
Billpoint (www.billpoint.com) facilitates person-to-person credit card payments over the Internet. Addressing the growing needs of auctions, classifieds and community sites, Billpoint empowers the entrepreneur in all of us by simplifying online payment collection. Billpoint, founded in 1998, is located in Redwood City, California. The company's management team brings significant expertise from both the Internet portal environment and the electronic payments industry.
eBay Purchases Respected Automobile Auctioneer
SAN JOSE, Calif., May 18,1999 -- eBay Inc.® (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com) today announced it has acquired Kruse International, one of the world's most respected and well established brands in the collector automobile market. The strategic acquisition will enable eBay to move into the collector automobile market and continue to offer the higher priced items its community wants.
"eBay and Kruse International are a perfect match," said Meg Whitman, president and chief executive officer of eBay. "We bring together diverse and fragmented groups of customers who are very passionate about selling and buying unique items they can't find anyplace else."
Ms.Whitman added that because of Kruse's excellent reputation, leadership position and expertise in this area it will assist eBay's presence not only in the collector car market but the general automobile market as well.
"I was very impressed with eBay's management team," said Dean Kruse, the chairman and chief executive officer of Kruse International. "They understand that in order to succeed in this business you have to have good customer relations and the very best employees to service those customers. It is easy to understand why eBay is the world's leading person-to-person online trading community and why the company has been profitable from day one."
eBay users will also benefit from the many services offered by Kruse, including a team of specialists able to appraise, authenticate and rate a wide range of automobiles as well as Kruse's extensive relationships with collectors and dealers throughout the world. Kruse participates in approximately 40 car auctions each year and has held events in 46 states, the United Kingdom and Japan.
eBay said that the purchase of Kruse International and the agreement to purchase Billpoint, Inc., a second transaction announced today, will result in the issuance of eBay common stock worth approximately $275 million. Both will be accounted for as pooling of interest transactions. The number of shares to be issued in the transactions will be determined by a formula involving the average share price of eBay common stock during a period prior to the closing of the transactions. eBay expects that the transactions may be slightly dilutive during the remainder of 1999. Closing is subject to certain conditions, and eBay may recognize certain one-time expenses related to the transactions in the second quarter. Both transactions are expected to close during the second quarter of 1999.
Forward Looking Statemen
This announcement contains forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the closing of this transaction. Actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, stock price movements, the Company's ability to integrate these new businesses and all of the factors that may influence future business and financial results, including those set forth in the Company's Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 1998, its form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 1999 and the Company's prospectus on Form S-1 dated April 12, 1999. All forward looking statements are based on information available to the Company on the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update such statements.
About eBay
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading community™, pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 3.8 million registered users and over 8 million unique people visited the site in March. Currently, there are more than 1.9 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
eBay And SkyTel To Offer Wireless Online Trading
SkyTel Network Will Enable eBay Users to Monitor and Participate in Auctions While Away from their Computers
SAN JOSE, Calf. and JACKSON, Miss. - May 13, 1999 - eBay® (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com), the world's leading person-to-person online trading community, and SkyTel Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SkyTel Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: SKYT; www.skytel.com) are joining forces to create a wireless person-to-person online trading service that will allow eBay users to receive auction updates and participate in auctions via wireless devices, including pagers, cell phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs).
The trading solution will offer the eBay community a suite of services. Wireless devices will notify buyers when they have been outbid in an auction and when they have won an auction on eBay. Sellers will be alerted when their items have sold. Users will also receive eBay broadcast messages with updates regarding general eBay community-wide news, new service offerings and service enhancements. "Our users often tell us that they would like to follow eBay away from the home or the office," said Steve Westly, vice president of marketing and business development at eBay. "SkyTel will make it possible for eBay users to get the very latest information on the items they are bidding on and selling when they are running errands, doing the shopping or driving the kids to school."
eBay and SkyTel will offer an eBay branded paging solution to users that currently do not own an alphanumeric paging device. This solution will be available on eBay's web site and will include a text pager and prepaid service, a personal toll-free number, nationwide coverage as needed and an email address.
Through SkyTel's Page Recall capability, eBay/SkyTel members will also be able to access their auction notifications via any telephone in the United States when they are out of the coverage area. Members can also use the pager as a personal messaging service, in addition to receiving eBay notifications.
SkyTel will also have the ability to send auction notifications to eBay users who already own wireless devices with Internet email addresses, including cell phones and PDAs.
"SkyTel is proud to participate in the e-commerce arena as eBay's official person-to-person wireless trading solution," said John T. Stupka, SkyTel president and CEO. "Prior to this service, many eBay users interested in items up for auction on the site may have been hesitant to leave their computers. SkyTel will provide the link that gives eBay users the freedom to go to work, to the store, to a special function or just about anywhere, without missing out on a coveted item."
The auction alert service, which will be launched by July 1999, is the first offering in a full suite of wireless trading solutions that SkyTel and eBay will roll out. Later in the year, SkyTel and eBay plan to offer an interactive service to allow eBay members to increase auction bid amounts directly from their wireless devices.
About SkyTel
SkyTel Communications, Inc. is a leader in wireless messaging, serving more than 1.6 million customers. Since 1989, SkyTel has led the industry toward true nationwide messaging through a series of innovations that culminated in SkyTel two-way interactive messaging service. This enables customers to exchange messages with the Internet and other pagers, receive messages via email and the Internet, and send messages to any telephone in the United States. SkyTel is headquartered in Jackson, Miss., and had 1998 revenue of $518 million.
About eBay
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading community™, pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 3.8 million registered users and had more than eight million unique visitors to the site in March 1999. Currently, there are more than 1.9 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
Forward Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the closing of this transaction. Actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the rate of future growth in the Company's business, the efficiency of the Company's customer support efforts, the timing of the opening of this new facility and other factors that may influence future business and financial results, including those set forth in the Company's Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 1998, and the Company's prospectus on Form S-1 dated April 12, 1999. All forward looking statements are based on information available to the Company on the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update such statements.
The Force Is With You On Ebay
Users Flock to eBay for Star Wars Collectibles
SAN JOSE, Calif., May 11, 1999 - With the release of "Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace" just one week away, fans from around the globe are coming to eBay® (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com), the world's leading person-to-person online trading community, to find a tremendous selection of Stars Wars® items. Currently, eBay is hosting auctions of more than 21,400 Star Wars collectibles from the original "Star Wars" trilogy and the upcoming movie.
eBay has long been a hub for Star Wars fans to find a wide variety of Star Wars memorabilia, such as classic porcelain figures of Princess Leia and Darth Vader PEZ dispensers, and items from the "Phantom Menace," such as posters of Anakin Skywalker and Queen Amidala figures.
From January to March 1999, more than 129,255 auctions involving Star Wars memorabilia took place on eBay. With the upcoming release of the new movie, the availability of Star Wars merchandise on eBay is exploding.
Deanna Bock, of Kirkland, Wash., began collecting Star Wars merchandise as a child when the movies first came out twenty years ago. She and her father, Lauren, have scoured garage sales, stores and toy shows, and even posted advertisements to build upon their collection. Now, their collection is one of the largest in the Pacific Northwest. Lauren has accumulated more than 1,000 Star Wars figures and Deanna designs custom outfits for the vintage 12-inch figures. In addition, a five-by-six foot Millennium Falcon hangs from their living room ceiling surrounded by X-Wing Fighters. Both are active eBay users.
"Whenever Deanna and I have trouble hunting down a unique Star Wars collectible, we know that it will be up for auction on eBay," said Lauren Bock. "Recently, I was trying to track down two Star Wars towels, one featuring Bobba Fett and the other, Stormtroopers. I could not find them anywhere, so I checked out eBay. I ended up finding and buying them both on eBay."
"eBay has made a significant impact on my Star Wars collecting. It's the place I can go to when I want to find highly sought after or hard to find Star Wars memorabilia," said Deanna Bock. "My father and I have converted one of our bedrooms into an 'Episode I' room, full of 'Phantom Menace' collectibles. Right now we're building up our collection of the 12-inch figures. Darth Maul and the other figures that we have difficulty obtaining, I'm confident we'll find on eBay."
Talk show host Rosie O'Donnell announced on the May 5th episode of "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" that she will auction off Star Wars memorabilia from her own collection on eBay. Director George Lucas signed a few of Rosie's Star Wars collectibles that will be included in the auctions. All proceeds from Rosie's auctions will benefit the For All Kids Foundation.
eBay is an official premier sponsor for the Worldwide Trilogy Celebration in Dallas, TX. This is a Star Wars theme convention held on May 21 to 23 in conjunction with the nationwide movie release of Episode I.
About eBay
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading community™, pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 3.8 million registered users and had more than eight million unique visitors to the site in March 1999. Currently, there are more than 1.9 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
eBay Announces Salt Lake City As Location For New Customer Support Center
Meg Whitman, eBay President and CEO, and Utah Governor, Mike Leavitt, Unveil Plans
SAN JOSE, Calif., May 6, 1999 - eBay® (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com), the world's leading person-to-person online trading community, today announced Salt Lake City as the location for its first remote customer support center. eBay president and CEO, Meg Whitman, and Utah Governor, Mike Leavitt, unveiled details of the new operation at a press conference held today at the Utah State Capitol building.
"Customer support is the cornerstone of eBay's success in online person-to-person trading," said Whitman. "We're expanding our support staff in order to stay ahead of the needs of our thriving online community. In just the first three months of this year, the eBay user base has almost doubled - from 2.1 million members to 3.8 million. With the establishment of a support center in Salt Lake City, we look forward to continuing our high quality service to our users."
eBay selected Salt Lake City for several reasons, including the existence of a well-educated, tech-savvy work force. In addition the location offers easy access to eBay's San Jose, CA headquarters.
eBay will begin recruiting in the Salt Lake City area, partnering with state and local government agencies, to hire potentially hundreds of employees by December 1999. Their main responsibility will be interacting via email with the eBay community, responding to inquiries and requests that users may experience when they visit the eBay site. Aggressive recruitment will begin immediately and continue into the year 2000.
"As an eBay user myself, I'm proud that Salt Lake City was selected as the site for their new customer support center," said Utah Governor, Mike Leavitt. "Our work force has the technology and customer support know-how to make this center very helpful for eBay users. We're delighted that the Salt Lake City community will become an integral part of the eBay experience."
eBay's customer support team, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, serves the community through a variety of resources. Catering to the needs of the community, customer support representatives provide assistance via email. Additionally, the team provides live customer support on eBay's customer support bulletin boards: "Support Q&A Board," "Support Q&A For New Users" and "Help with Images and HTML." The new Salt Lake City center signifies eBay's commitment to its customers and complements its current customer support operations.
About eBay
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading community™, pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 3.8 million registered users and had more than eight million unique visitors to the site in March 1999. Currently, there are more than two million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
Forward Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including those relating to the closing of this transaction. Actual results could differ materially from those discussed. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, the rate of future growth in the Company's business, the efficiency of the Company's customer support efforts, the timing of the opening of this new facility and other factors that may influence future business and financial results, including those set forth in the Company's Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 1998, and the Company's prospectus on Form S-1 dated April 12, 1999. All forward looking statements are based on information available to the Company on the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update such statements.
Kinko's And eBay Forge Joint Marketing Agreement
Two Category Leaders Join Forces to Provide Greater Internet Access and Online Trading Support Services to Customers
SAN JOSE AND VENTURA, CA - Kinko's, Inc., the leading global retail provider of document copying and business services, and eBay, the leading person-to-person online trading community, today announced a cooperative marketing agreement.
The agreement provides customers of both companies with greater access to eBay through Kinko's computer and Internet services at more than 900 Kinko's locations in the U.S. It also creates linkages to a wide variety of Kinko's support services to make the online trading process easier and more effective.
"This relationship is a great fit, enabling us to leverage our brand and service synergies to provide greater value for our customers," said Ellen Turner, chief marketing officer for Kinko's, Inc. "Our customers use Kinko's to express their ideas and information, and giving them access to technology is an important aspect of effective communication. Joining together with eBay, a clear leader in electronic commerce and one of the best known Internet companies today, is another example of how we function as a highly effective communication tool for customers."
"The agreement was established because of the highly complementary services of the two brand leaders. We are excited about this and believe it is mutually beneficial to Kinko's, eBay, and most importantly, our customers," said Steve Westly, vice president of marketing and business development for eBay. "Kinko's provides an excellent resource that can make the eBay user experience easier and more efficient with their locations nationwide and complete business services."
Under the agreement, Kinko's web site links will be featured on eBay site pages in the computer, business/office and big-ticket categories. eBay will receive in-store signage in Kinko's locations across the country. In addition, eBay site visitors will receive 15 minutes of free computer rental time at any participating Kinko's branch. The two companies are exploring further opportunities for future joint promotional programs.
Kinko's keeps eBay buyers and sellers close to the action 24 hours a day, seven days a week through Internet access via its rental computers. Kinko's can help eBay customers check the bidding status of eBay items, scan photos of items for digital posting, correspond via email with other buyers and sellers, fax signed documentation, use FedExâ and UPSâ shipping services, make color copies, and even hold a live videoconference to see items and meet other buyers and sellers "in person." The agreement also will introduce many Kinko's customers to eBay and the benefits of its marketplace approach to efficient, one-to-one Web trading format.
According to Turner, "Both Kinko's and eBay are pioneers of our respective business categories. We share similar operating philosophies of around-the-clock personalized customer service and innovation in meeting customer needs. We look forward to a relationship that brings our unique customer communities closer together through the combination of retail and electronic commerce."
Named in 1999 as one of Fortune magazine's top 100 companies in America to work for, Kinko's is a leading global retail provider of document copying and business services. It is a privately held corporation with 25,000 co-workers and operations in nine countries. For additional information, call 800/2-kinkos, or visit the company's Web site at http://www.kinkos.com.
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading communityJ, pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 3.8 million registered users. Currently, there are more than 1.9 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
eBay And Krause Publications Partner To Introduce The Official Ebay Magazine
New Lifestyle Publication Celebrates the Enthusiasts in All of Us
SAN JOSE, Calif. May 3, 1999 - eBay™ (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com), the world's leading person-to-person online trading community, and Krause Publications (www.krause.com), one of the world's largest publishers, have announced a new marketing initiative to launch an eBay magazine. The monthly lifestyle publication will be geared to the millions of Internet-savvy collecting consumers who are using their considerable purchasing power to buy items on the Internet and have made going online part of their daily lives. The premier issue will hit newsstands and specialty retailers nationwide in mid August 1999.
"The eBay community is made up of a diverse group of users ranging from casual collectors and enthusiasts to people who make their living by trading items full time on the site," said Steve Westly, vice president of marketing and business development. "We're proud to partner with Krause to introduce the magazine with these people in mind. The eBay magazine will be an entertaining and valuable resource for anyone interested in learning more about the cultural phenomenon of collecting via the Internet or even making a living on it. " According to Media Metrix February Web Report, eBay is the third most popular site on the Internet when measured by total user minutes per month (800 million) and first among all e-commerce companies.
"The eBay magazine will be the print portal for the growing number of people who are flocking to e-commerce sites," said Jim Gleim, executive publisher of Krause Publications. "eBay's online consumers are a marketer's dream audience, spending more time and dollars in transactions than any other group on the Web, and from the data, their online spending extends well beyond the confines of the eBay site - so will the content of this magazine."
In the fourth quarter of 1998 alone, eBay users generated more than $306 million in gross merchandise sales (the value of goods sold between individuals). eBay offers the broadest selection of items for sale anywhere on the Internet - and quite possibly in the world - with more than 1.8 million items up for auction each day in more than 1,500 categories. In fact, on average, during the fourth quarter of 1998, every minute of every day more than 150 new items were listed, more than 500 bids were placed and seven new people registered on eBay.
Among the many topical issues the new magazine will address are: essential tips for navigating the Internet trading/commerce experience; practical advice for finding that special or elusive item; feature stories on celebrity collectors, online and offline trading, and the latest enabling technologies; and assistance with valuation and authentication of items.
About Krause Publications
Krause Publications is the world's largest hobby publisher. Coin collector Chet Krause founded Krause Publications in 1952 when he launched a trader publication titled "Numismatic News." Today, Krause publishes 37 periodicals in 12 collectible and hobby fields and offers more than 500 books covering the same topics. More than 100 new books are published by Krause each year. Krause Publications, an employee-owned firm since 1988, has been named employee-owned company of the year at both state and national levels.
About eBay
eBay (www.ebay.com), the world's personal trading community (TM), pioneered person-to-person online trading. Founded in 1995, eBay has developed an efficient and entertaining trading site on the Web that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. eBay has more than 2.1 million registered users. Currently, there are more than 1.8 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,500 categories, including: antiques; books, movies and music; coins and stamps; collectibles; computers; dolls and figures; jewelry and gemstones; photo and electronics; pottery and glass; sports memorabilia; and toys.
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