A Merry Season for Online Retailers, Sales up 25 Percent

Online holiday spending got off to a great start and has showed few signs of slowing down. In the first 45 days (from Nov. 1 to Dec. 15) sales are up 25 percent versus the same period last year, now totaling $19.48 billion, according to ComScore Networks.
Monday December 11th set a new record with $660.8 million being spent online in just that one day, but that record was then broken just two days later when sales on December 13th topped $666.9 million. Last year it was December 11th which held the record for the highest sales in one day with $556.2 million. ComScore Networks predicted that we would see the highest sales of the 2006 season sometime during last week, and since every day this week beat the 2005 season high by $60 million or more, that does not surprise me.

Read more http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m12/i18/s03

The Challenge for eBay Sellers (Vendor Monday)

In today's AuctionBytes "Vendor Monday" column, Internet Business Skills founder Allison Hartsoe discusses the evolution of eBay from sales channel to customer acquisition tool. Each week, AuctionBytes.com runs an article submitted by a vendor or marketplace in the online-auction industry about a topic helpful to online sellers. Story submissions are welcome by emailing the editor.
Is eBay a sales channel or a marketing channel? The difference is as a sales channel, you expect to make money. As a marketing channel, you expect to acquire customers for the best cost. Here's how eBay has changed and why your strategy should change too.

Read more http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m12/i18/s02

eBay Australia Wins Ticket-Scalping Policy Case

eBay Australia announced Monday it had won a court case involving ticket sales policies. According to news wire reports, tickets to the 2007 Big Day Out concerts included a provision that the tickets would be canceled and the holders refused entry if they were resold for profit. eBay said that condition was misleading and deceptive and confused consumers, and sued the promoters. The Australian Federal Court ruled in eBay's favor.
Read more http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m12/i19/s03

eBay Tests Shopping Cart on Shopping.com Comparison Site

Consumers can now purchase vacuums, perfume and printer cartridges at Shopping.com, and they can use their existing eBay User IDs to complete the transaction directly on the site. Shopping.com, which is owned by eBay, is a leading comparison-shopping engine where retailers pay to display their items side-by-side those of other retailers. Consumers can compare prices of items across multiple online retailers, and must click through to the retail site to actually purchase items. But Shopping.com is currently testing a feature that allows consumers to purchase items from multiple retailers in one transaction, directly on Shopping.com.

Read more http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m12/i19/s02