Re: INFO: eBay v. AuctionWatch?

On 10/12/1999, Colin Seeger <seeger[_at_]ozemail.com.au> wrote:
>
> Thanks for the description -- I get a rash if I go near on-line
> auction sites so stay well away. Mind you, that's one nifty piece
> of software they've got. Still not sure why ebay is bullying them
> but there you are. I agree with you about the functional advantages --
> if the would-be buyer is given easier access to e-Bay, what's their
> beef? I think the earlier comment about steroids or hormones or
> whatever was right on target.

While I believe that eBay has no legal leg to stand on, I think eBay's motivation is clear: in the absence of a metasearcher like Auctionwatch, eBay has (currently) a huge advantage over all the other auction sites: it's bigger, in that it attracts more sellers and buyers. If I were going to sell something, I'd put it on eBay, because it gets more eyeballs than anyone else. More eyeballs is more potential bidders. If I'm looking for something, I'll go to eBay first, again because it's the biggest, and has the most stuff up for sale; I'm more likely to find what I'm looking for at eBay than anywhere else. Serially searching at multiple auction sites is a pain in the butt, so if I can meet most of my needs at eBay, I might not even look elsewhere: it takes time to load up a page and run a search.

eBay has "earned" this advantage by being first to market, and by promoting the hell out of itself.

Auctionwatch puts all the other auction sites at parity with eBay: any advantage (in terms of attracting users) that eBay might have as a result of its larger size is eliminated, if I can search everywhere at once, with one search, from one place.

In the absence of Auctionwatch, eBay could say "If you put your auction on our site, you'll reach thousands more people than you will on Yahoo or Amazon. So, pay our higher prices to run your auction here; it's worth it." With Auctionwatch in the picture, eBay can't say this. The response is: "No, because tons of people are using Auctionwatch, so it doesn't MATTER which site I put my auction on. They're all the same, since people search them all at once. So there's no justification for paying your higher price, eBay."

-Ari

Ari Kahan
<akahan[_at_]netcom.com>