eBay Testing New Search Features

eBay said this week it is launching a new offering called "Garden by eBay," an area on the site that will allow members to test new features and provide feedback for improvements and changes.

Garden by eBay is an opt-in initiative with a concept that is similar to Google Labs where users can test and experiment with different features before they are officially released.

eBay says that Garden members' feedback will be provided directly to the teams that manage new, proposed or existing features. The goal is to bring buyers and sellers into the process and help the company introduce, test and roll out features faster.

The first major feature to be introduced is a new "streamlined search" aimed at making it easier to browse and view search results. Streamlined search offers a cleaner view of inventory, and better ways for buyers to browse items. Users can compare auction and Buy It Now listings side-by-side, refine their searches with fewer clicks, get an at-a-glance view of an item's name, price and format and view same-screen pop-up windows for item detail.

"The new Garden by eBay represents a new collaborative conversation with the eBay community-a chance to listen to their thoughts on upcoming features, and to bring them closer to our own innovation process," said Christopher Payne, eBay vice president of search.

"And by seeding the Garden with streamlined search, we're asking for the community's input on improving one of the most important areas of eBay.com."
 

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eBay Declares Mobile Success For Holiday Season

If any of your Christmas presents were a bit odd-looking or seemed like impulse buys, it might be because the gift giver did his or her shopping using a small, accessible screen.  eBay reported today that mobile transactions picked up dramatically this holiday season compared to last.

The volume of mobile transactions tripled on a year-over-year basis, according to eBay, and the current rate of unique mobile visits per day is around 750,000.  People aren't just grabbing lots of cheap odds and ends, either, considering that a 23-foot boat recently sold for $19,108 and a Steinway grand piano sold for $10,000.

Then here's a curious detail: mobile commerce seems to have become especially popular in the Lone Star State, since "[f]our of the top 10 U.S. ZIP codes for number of people buying via their mobile phones are from Texas."

Anyway, Lorrie Norrington, the president of eBay marketplaces, concluded, "Mobile is changing the way people shop this holiday season. . . .  eBay buyers and sellers have rapidly embraced mobile commerce this year, and this holiday season has been a mobile commerce tipping point.  Shopping will never be the same again."

eBay sellers and regular retailers who haven't already done so are sure to spend the next several months adapting.

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> eBay Fined $2.6 Million Over LVMH Sales

> eBay Previews Possible Geotargeting Feature For Sellers

> eBay Back On Its Feet After Search/Browse Outage

eBay Fined $2.6 Million Over LVMH Sales

If a French court has its way, eBay will soon have to fork over $2.6 million.  The fine stems from a ban on the sale (or purchase) of LVMH goods, and actually ties to a case that ended in eBay being told to pay LVMH $61 million.

LVMH, which is the entity behind luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Tag Heuer, and De Beers, won a major case against eBay in June of last year.  LVMH claimed to be concerned about the sale of counterfeit merchandise, and eBay was supposed to keep all related items off its French site as a result.

Apparently eBay wasn't completely successful, however (misspelled listings may have created problems), hence the latest fine.

Now, Alex von Schirmeister, the general manager of eBay in France, has stated, "We believe that the higher courts will overturn this ruling and ensure that eCommerce companies such as eBay will continue to provide a platform for buyers and sellers to trade authentic goods.

von Schirmeister also said, "The fine itself is disproportionate given that eBay complied with the Injunction.  It is out of step with our legal victories in France, UK, Germany, Belgium and the U.S."

Look for further developments down the road, then, as eBay appeals the ruling.

Have You Read This?

> eBay Sued By Shoe Retailer

> eBay Collects Another Win Against L'Oreal

> eBay Wins French Ruling Over L'Oreal Fakes

eBay Fined $2.6 Million Over LVMH Sales

If a French court has its way, eBay will soon have to fork over $2.6 million.  The fine stems from a ban on the sale (or purchase) of LVMH goods, and actually ties to a case that ended in eBay being told to pay LVMH $61 million.

LVMH, which is the entity behind luxury brands like Louis Vuitton, Tag Heuer, and De Beers, won a major case against eBay in June of last year.  LVMH claimed to be concerned about the sale of counterfeit merchandise, and eBay was supposed to keep all related items off its French site as a result.

Apparently eBay wasn't completely successful, however (misspelled listings may have created problems), hence the latest fine.

Now, Alex von Schirmeister, the general manager of eBay in France, has stated, "We believe that the higher courts will overturn this ruling and ensure that eCommerce companies such as eBay will continue to provide a platform for buyers and sellers to trade authentic goods.

von Schirmeister also said, "The fine itself is disproportionate given that eBay complied with the Injunction.  It is out of step with our legal victories in France, UK, Germany, Belgium and the U.S."

Look for further developments down the road, then, as eBay appeals the ruling.

Have You Read This?

> eBay Sued By Shoe Retailer

> eBay Collects Another Win Against L'Oreal

> eBay Wins French Ruling Over L'Oreal Fakes

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