By: DetNews
(05-03-2002)

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- EBay Inc., the largest Internet auctioneer, will double some advertising and auction fees for residential and commercial real estate as it spends more to improve computer systems and customer service.
EBay will raise fees to list and advertise property that''s for sale or is going into foreclosure on March 7, according to its Web site, with some charges increasing twofold. It will lower listing fees for 30-day auctions of timeshare real estate and land.
EBay has raised fees this year to pay for improvements in its computer systems, customer service and marketing. On Jan. 31 the company boosted the so-called final-value fee, or the amount it keeps from completed transactions, by 5 percent to 20 percent at its U.S. Web site. It also raised the listing fee for a vehicle to $40 from $25.
"This is part of their strategy of tweaking each category and trying to drive revenue," said CIBC World Markets analyst John Corcoran, who has a "buy" rating on the shares and doesn''t own any of the stock.
EBay last month estimated that revenue in the first half of 2002 will increase to $490 million to $510 million from $335 million a year earlier.
Corcoran said the price changes won''t increase EBay''s revenue significantly because real estate auctions and advertising isn''t one of the company''s larger categories. The company doesn''t charge a final value fee for auctions of real estate, he said.
EBay will raise the auction fees from $50 to $100 for three to 10-day auctions, an announcement on its Web site said. It will increase fees for 30-day auctions to $150 from $100.
Sellers using the auction site to advertise real estate or commercial properties will pay $150 for a 30-day ad and $200 for a 90-day ad. Both are 50 percent increases.
The fee for the 30-day auction of timeshare property or land is being reduced to $75 from $100. EBay wasn''t immediately available to comment on the increases.
Shares of San Jose, California-based EBay rose $1.94 to $54.14.