SAN JOSE, CALIF. July 14, 1999 — eBay® (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com), the world's leading person-to-person online trading community, today announced the expansion of its relationship with Collectors Universe, the leading third-party autograph certification company, to include expert certification for autographed memorabilia, and continue eBay's commitment to providing its users with services and tools to ensure safe online person-to-person trading.
In April 1999, eBay announced its relationship with Collectors Universe with the introduction of expert authentication and grading for trading cards and coins through Collectors Universe subsidiaries, Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) and Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS). After the positive response by the eBay community to authentication by PSA and PCGS, the addition of PSA/DNA to the lineup further emphasizes eBay's commitment to the secure trading of collectibles.
"eBay is committed to providing its community the services and tools to ensure the safest online person-to-person trading," said Steve Westly, vice president of marketing and business development for eBay. "We recognize Collectors Universe as respected leaders in their field and we're proud to continue our relationship and expand their offerings to our community."
Certification submission forms are accessible from the co-branded eBay and PSA/DNA site beginning July 12 at http://www.PSADNA.com/eBay. Information on the certification services for autographed memorabilia will also be available at http://pages.ebay.com/help/community/auth-autographs.html and from individual category homepages.
"Collectors Universe is proud to be a part of this new initiative to help buyers and sellers achieve peace of mind in sight-unseen trading of vintage sports collectibles," said Louis M. Crain, president and CEO of Collectors Universe. "Assurance as to the authenticity of an item will not only help to promote the sale and the value of memorabilia, it will also increase the enjoyment that comes with owning a piece of sports history."
eBay sellers will receive a 10 percent rebate from PSA/DNA through August 31. When autographed items are submitted to PSA/DNA, they are examined by at least three of the world's leading autograph experts. After they have been certified by PSA/DNA, collectors can be confident that the industry's top experts are convinced their autographs are authentic. PSA/DNA tags each item using state-of-the-art technology to protect autographed collectibles. Besides the tamper-evident label, serial number, and Certificate of Authenticity, PSA/DNA's multi-level security system uses a proprietary synthetic DNA that is permanent, invisible, non-damaging and non-transferable.
The process for sellers starts by sending an item or items to PSA/DNA for certification. The fee for each item will vary depending on value of item submitted. Once certified, the certification information is immediately accessible by visiting the PSA/DNA website at www.CollectorsUniverse.com or by calling PSA/DNA directly. The technology used by PSA/DNA virtually eliminates the problem of counterfeits and allows items to be verified every time they change hands. The synthetic DNA used to tag each item can only be viewed using a specially calibrated infrared laser.
"eBay's new autograph authentication capabilities give me the convenience and confidence to maximize my buying and selling opportunities of autographed memorabilia," said Mark Maron, owner of Animation Art Ltd, who sells animation and autographed sports memorabilia on eBay. "I am pleased with the solutions that eBay is offering to help me trade. I plan to use this service as much as possible."
About Collectors Universe
PSA/DNA is a state-of-the-art autograph authentication service developed by Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) of Newport Beach, California. PSA/DNA has authenticated many historic sports autographs and collectibles, including Mark McGwire's record-breaking #70 Home run ball and Hank Aaron's 715th Home run ball and bat. PSA/DNA is a division of Collectors Universe. Collectors Universe is the world's largest provider of collectibles grading and authentication services. Divisions of Collectors Universe include: Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA), the world's largest sportscard grading service, currently grading over 120,000 sportscards per month; and Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS), the world's leading rare coin grading service. PCGS has graded 5,750,841 coins with a declared value of $8,419,242,147 during the past 12 years.
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 3.8 million registered users. Currently, there are more than 2.3 million items listed for sale. More than 250,000 items are added daily in more than 1,600 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.
The eBay From Our Home Page To Your Hometown Tour Hits the Road This Summer
eBay Vehicles Cruise the Country to Bring The Exciting World of e-Commerce To Life
SAN JOSE, Calf. July 28, 1999 — eBay® (NASDAQ: EBAY; www.ebay.com), the world’s leading person-to-person online trading community, announced a nationwide, interactive tour hitting the road this summer called "From Our Home Page to Your Hometown." Visiting more than 30 communities across America, the tour is providing people with the opportunity to get up close and personal with the Internet’s popular person-to-person trading site.
"We’re hitting the highway this summer to reach out to our community and bring eBay into local communities to show people how easy and fun it is to buy and sell online," said Brian Swette, senior vice president of marketing and international at eBay. "Millions of people use eBay to trade almost anything you can imagine, but there are still many people who have not experienced online trading first-hand."
eBay guides are crisscrossing the country in two Fleetwood RVs, visiting local community events to demonstrate the ease and power of bidding, buying and selling online. The on-site eBay guides introduce first-timers to the auction process and demonstrate how to buy and sell effectively online. They also provide helpful tips on how to tailor searches for maximum results, including how to use special eBay features, such as Personal Shopper, My eBay and About Me.
The eBay RVs, which roll in at more than 30 feet in length, bring the eBay community spirit to life with its dramatic visual displays, including larger-than-life pictures of items traded from some of the most popular categories on eBay, including a giant green Tyrannosaurus Rex and vintage lava lamps. The 20-by-30-foot eBay blimp soars overhead at events identifying the eBay Tour location. Both eBay RV’s are fully equipped to provide direct access to eBay.
"This is a great opportunity to meet and speak directly with our users who are already trading on eBay and the many others who may want to be part of this growing community," said Forrest Marsh, eBay Tour coordinator. "We hear regularly from users how the Internet has helped change their lives, and we want to make that a reality for even more people."
The eBay "From Our Home Page to Your Hometown" tour will visit local community events in more than 30 cities coast-to-coast, including:
— NASCAR, Indianapolis, Ind., August 5 - 7
— Football Hall of Fame, Canton, Ohio, August 6 - 10
— Elvis Week at Graceland, Memphis, Tenn., August 12 - 15
— Kruse International, Indianapolis, Ind., September 3 - 6
For a complete listing of events, log on to www.ebay.com. In addition to tour stops, eBay will feature weekly updates on hot happenings at the tour events from the eBay Tour crew.
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 5.6 million registered users. Currently, there are more than 2.4 million items listed for sale. More than 300,000 items are added daily in more than 1,600 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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