The online auction web site was founded in San Jose, California on September 3,
1995 by computer programmer Pierre Omidyar as AuctionWeb,[1] part of a larger
personal site that included, among other things, Omidyar's own tongue-in-cheek
tribute to the Ebola virus.
The very first item sold on eBay was Omidyar's broken laser pointer for $14.83.
Astonished, he contacted the winning bidder and asked if he understood that the
laser pointer was broken. In his responding email, the buyer explained: "I'm a
collector of broken laser pointers."[2] The frequently repeated story that eBay
was founded to help Omidyar's fiancée trade PEZ Candy dispensers was fabricated
by a public relations manager in 1997 to interest the media. This was revealed
in Adam Cohen's 2002 book[3] and confirmed by eBay.
Chris Agarpao was hired as eBay's first employee and Jeff Skoll was hired as the
first president of the company in 1996. In November 1996, eBay entered into its
first third-party licensing deal, with a company called Electronic Travel
Auction to use SmartMarket Technology to sell plane tickets and other travel
products. The company officially changed the name of its service from AuctionWeb
to eBay in September 1997. Originally, the site belonged to Echo Bay Technology
Group, Omidyar's consulting firm. Omidyar had tried to register the domain name
EchoBay.com but found it already taken by the Echo Bay Mines, a gold mining
company, so he shortened it to his second choice, eBay.com.[citation needed]
Items and services
Millions of collectibles, appliances, computers, furniture, equipment, vehicles,
and other miscellaneous items are listed, bought, and sold daily. In 2004, eBay
launched its Business & Industrial category, breaking into the industrial
surplus business. Some items are rare and valuable, while many others are dusty
gizmos that would have been discarded if not for the thousands of eager bidders
worldwide. Anything can be sold as long as it is not illegal or does not violate
the eBay Prohibited and Restricted Items policy.[4] Services and intangibles can
be sold too. Large international companies, such as IBM, sell their newest
products and offer services on eBay using competitive auctions and fixed-priced
storefronts. Regional searches of the database make shipping slightly faster and
cheaper. Software developers can create applications that integrate with eBay
through the eBay API by joining the eBay Developers Program.[5] As of June 2005,
there were over 15,000 members in the eBay Developers Program, comprising a
broad range of companies creating software applications to support eBay buyers
and sellers as well as eBay Affiliates.
Controversy has arisen over certain items put up for bid. For instance, in late
1999 a man offered one of his kidneys for auction on eBay, attempting to profit
from the potentially lucrative (and, in the United States, illegal) market for
transplantable human organs. On other occasions, people and even entire towns
have been listed, often as a joke or to garner free publicity. In general, the
company removes auctions that violate its terms of service agreement within a
short time after hearing of the auction from an outsider; the company's policy
is to not pre-approve transactions. eBay is also an easy place for unscrupulous
sellers to market counterfeit merchandise, which can be difficult for novice
buyers to distinguish without careful study of the auction description.
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