eBay Vice President Jim Ambach announced today that eBay is discontinuing its Live Auction format services at the end of the year, citing an effort to improve “buying and selling experiences”. The “Live Auction” format differs from eBay’s traditional business model of scheduled, “online-only” auctions, and typically (as it relates to original props, wardrobe, and memorabilia auctions from movies and television) provides collectors the ability to bid on items auctioned “live” over the Internet, in real time, in lieu of being present at the actual auction event with people bidding in person, with the auctioneer recognizing “floor” bids, telephone bids, absentee bids, and online bids.
This will have an impact on the business models of those auction houses and dealers that have leveraged the power, infrastructure, and brand name of eBay to promote their auctions and facilitate online bidding, such as Profiles in History, Premiere Props with their “Hollywood Roadshow” events, and one off events like Guernsey’s “Pugliese Pop Culture Collection” event which utilized eBay Live Auctions as well. These companies will need to turn to an alternate resource in 2009, or produce an in-house solution, such as the one currently employed by Christie’s.
However, even with replacing the capability of the service, eBay has a “built-in” audience and set of users which is very beneficial in promoting awareness of these auctions. eBay has also become synonymous with “online auction” of any format (see “Original Props, eBay, and Competition in the Online Auction Space“). It will be interesting to see how the marketplace reacts to the change in the online “landscape”.
I did ask Mr. Maddelena, the owner of Profiles in History, in my interview last year about eBay and eBay Live Auctions (see “Featured Interview: Joe Maddalena, Profiles in History“):
Q. Do you have a sense of how many of your bidders are on the Internet, versus in person, proxy, or phone?
A. We’ll get 1,000 people who participate on eBay. So of them, that’s maybe 25% of the auction. We get a lot of bids through the Internet. Internet, eBay, I’ve got to qualify that, it’s eBay Live Auctions. So how many are eBay people who just stumble across us, and how many of those are existing clients who just like to bid online? So they’re almost impossible questions to answer, because a lot of people like to bid online now.
The announcement can be found on eBay (LINK):
***A Message from Jim Ambach – Live Auction Format Being Retired End of 2008***
April 15, 2008 | 01:00PM PST/PT
Jim Ambach
Hi everyone…As of December 31, 2008, eBay will no longer offer eBay Live Auctions. As we work to improve the buying and selling experiences which you’ve heard our leaders talk about – including significant investments in Trust & Safety and customer support – we need to make sure our resources are aligned with our priorities. In the case of Live Auctions, maintaining and improving this platform falls outside our immediate focus, and will, therefore, be retired at the end of the year.Many members may not be aware of Live Auctions – these are differentiated listings linked to physical or virtual auction houses, and moderated by a live auctioneer. Furthermore, these listings are not subject to a specific end time; Live Auctions conclude when there are no further bids.
Before I continue, let’s be clear: eBay will continue to offer auction-style listings which constitute the majority of items on eBay.com.
Over the years, eBay partnered with a very small number of service providers who in turn worked directly with the live auction houses to supply merchandise and auctioneers for eBay Live Auctions. In addition, several hundred sellers list their items directly using the Live Auction format.
This announcement will represent a significant change for the small number of partners, buyers, and sellers involved with Live Auctions, which is why we’re giving eight months notice. We’ve been in touch with each of our service provider partners, and between now and the end of this year, we’ll continue to work with our Live Auction partners and sellers to ensure a smooth and seamless termination of this aspect of our business.
Sincerely,
Jim Ambach
Vice President, Seller Experience
Jason De Bord