eBay-PayPal breakup set for July

US online giant eBay said Friday its board approved the planned spinoff of its PayPal online payments unit, which will trade as an independent company July 20.

The plan calls for the distribution of PayPal stock to eBay shareholders on July 17, with the financial unit starting to trade under the symbol PYPL on July 20.

“eBay and PayPal are two great, special businesses,” said John Donahoe, president and chief executive of eBay.

“As separate, independent companies, eBay, led by Devin Wenig, and PayPal, led by Dan Schulman, will each have a sharper focus and greater flexibility to pursue future success in their respective global commerce and payments markets.”

The plan, announced last year, came after months of pressure from activist investor Carl Icahn, who had assailed eBay for poor management and claimed that keeping eBay tied with PayPal depressed the value of both units.

eBay acquired PayPal in 2002 for roughly $1.5 billion in shares, integrating the payment service that had already been widely used for online auctions.

PayPal over the years has expanded beyond a simple payment mechanism for eBay auctions. But Icahn and others have argued that PayPal need to change to compete better in the fast-moving online payments segment.

In 2014, PayPal processed $235 billion in payments and handled one billion mobile transactions. It had revenues last year of $8 billion and worked with 10 million merchants worldwide.

source: technology.inquirer.net

Justin Bieber’s shoes sold for $62,000 at charity auction

STRATFORD, Ontario — A pair of Justin Bieber’s Nike basketball shoes has fetched more than $62,000 in an eBay auction to benefit a food bank in the pop star’s hometown of Stratford, Ontario.

Bieber’s grandparents, Diane and Bruce Dale, donated some of Bieber’s personal items to raise money for the Stratford House of Blessing food bank. The auction started Jan. 31 and closed at noon on Saturday.

Bieber’s Toronto Maple Leafs comforter sold for more than $6,000, his pillow case went for more than $3,000, and his ceiling light came in at just under $2,000.

The charity says on its website that Bieber and his mother chose to donate the items “because they were helped by us in their time of need.”

Organizers say Bieber autographed the items when he was in the area over the holidays, and each came with a certificate of authenticity signed by his grandmother.

The winning bids aren’t finalized until confirmed by eBay.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

eBay, Sotheby’s unveil tie-up on art auctions

NEW YORK—Highbrow art house Sotheby’s is opening a door to the masses in an alliance with Internet age online marketplace eBay.

The companies touted the tie-up as uniting eBay’s global clout with the “iconic international art” expertise of Sotheby’s famed auction house.

The eBay website will soon launch a revamped market for art and collectibles, featuring live auctions with real-time bidding from around the world. Sotheby’s was billed as the virtual venue’s “anchor tenant.”

The collaboration will begin with a series of live auctions from Sotheby’s headquarters in New York City.

The companies will also “explore themed and time-based sales, as well as live auctions from Sotheby’s other global salesrooms.”

“The growth of the art market, new generation technology and our shared strengths make this the right time for this exciting new online opportunity,” said Sotheby’s chief operating officer Bruno Vinciguerra.

“We are joining with eBay to make our sales more accessible to the broadest possible audience around the world.”

Sotheby’s says online bidders accounted for about 17 percent of the lots offered in 2013.

The number of lots purchased online at Sotheby’s last year jumped 36 percent from that seen in 2012, with an accompanying surge in bidders using smartphones or tablets to access the auction house online.

Mobile devices account for a quarter of the visits so far this year to people visiting sothebys.com

- $41,000 watch -

More than half of Sotheby’s lots sold in the $5,000 to $100,000 price range. The average price of a watch auctioned at Sotheby’s topped $41,000 while the average winning bid for a print was about $27,500.

John James Audubon’s elephant-folio “The Birds of America” sold in April 2014 for $3.5 million, setting a record for an online purchase in a live auction at Sotheby’s.

Devin Wenig, president of eBay Marketplaces, said the partnership “is a significant milestone in our efforts to expand the live auction market.”

“Sotheby’s is one of the most respected names in the world,” Wenig added.

“When you combine its inventory with eBay’s technology platform and global reach, we can give people access to the world’s finest, most inspiring items — any time, anywhere and from any device.”

California-based eBay has some 145 million customers in 190 countries, and says 36 million purchased some $8 billion in collectibles from the site in 2013.

According to surveys cited by the two firms, the global art market is currently estimated around $65 billion and online art sales could reach $13 billion by 2020.

By accessing eBay’s huge audience, Sotheby’s increases the potential for bidding competition and, by extension, bigger payoffs on art or collectibles put on the blocks.

“The more people bidding, the more money sellers make and the more money Sotheby’s makes; so it is sort of a natural,” said analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group in Silicon Valley.

Sotheby’s will need to be cautious about dulling its reputation as a high-end auction house by rubbing elbows with eBay, which is known for bargains and oddities, according to the analyst.

source: technology.inquirer.net

Kurt Cobain-Decorated Melvins Van For Sale

Before forming Nirvana, Kurt Cobain was a major fan of the Melvins, a then up-and-coming local band from Montesano, Washington, who equally enjoyed punk rock and heavy metal – and helped create "grunge" in the process. And to show his appreciation of the band, Cobain drew a "Kiss mural" (similar to the cover of Kiss' self-titled debut) on the side of the Melvins' van – and chauffeured the band to their shows. And now, the "Melvan" (which is a beat-up 1972 Dodge Sportsman Royal Van) is up for auction on eBay.

An eBay seller by the name of "taddoyal" is listing it, however, it is not the former singer/guitarist of the grunge band Tad (Tad Doyle) who is selling it, but rather a gentleman by the name of Ben Berg, who plays bass in the group Weird Beast. It turns out Berg has been in possession of the vehicle since around 1992. "When I turned 16, I got the van from Kay Lukin, who is Matt Lukin's mother [Matt was the Melvins' original bassist]. It was a gift mainly. You've got to understand, I was just this huge Melvins fan. They were like gods to me."

"When I found out that their old tour van was parked somewhere on the outskirts of Montesano, it was like a little pilgrimage for me, because I couldn't drive at the time. To actually go out and sit in this thing was like a wet dream. And Kay could see my enthusiasm and my pure awe over her son's old band. It had been sitting on their property for a few years. They didn't know what to do with it, so she made one of my dreams come true. That was my first car, dude!"

After Berg obtained the van, he discovered that it also had a connection to Nirvana. "I had no idea that Kurt was even affiliated with that van until well after it was in my possession. I was told that the Kiss mural was drawn by Kurt Cobain and it was done in Sharpie markers that he shoplifted. I was also told that he used to drive the Melvins around to their shows in the area."

Also, there is a chance that there is another Cobain-connection to the Melvan. "I think Kurt's name is carved somewhere in the van, as well. I don't know the exact location. I know that Krist Novoselic's name is carved in there. Dale Crover's name from the Melvins is carved in there."

And what about the mileage on the Melvan? "Oh god, it's off the chart. When the Melvins had it, they actually used it on their first US tour. They went all the way over to the East Coast in it. Buzz [Osborne] told me one time that somewhere on that tour; they woke up to Lukin trying to put out a fire in the engine. It hasn't been started for years. It can run – it needs to be totally gone through. It needs a major overhaul. But it can be done."

Lastly, what is Berg hoping to earn by auctioning the Melvan? "It's on eBay reserved at $150,000. If it's somebody with money right now that wants to contact me, I would let it go for like $135,000." Bidding is set to close on March 13th.

source: http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/kurt-cobain-decorated-melvins-van-for-sale-20120306

Hobby & Collectibles

A lot of people have the passion for collecting. Becoming a collector is a hobby, for the love and devotion of collecting even for money. Depending on the financial limitations. Collecting or gathering items can be a fun hobby. There are so many interesting things to collect and gather. Whatever collectible you chose, you will find that you will put much energy and love into building your collection.

Any item that is relatively old, has a particular quality of art, and features that reflect to the past are considered to be rare collector's items by many collectors today. It can be antiques, toys, figurines, sports memorabila, record albums etc..




Collecting Antiques, Antique collectibles can be very valuable. Antique is one of the valuable materials. Many sellers find the reason to sell these at high-priced because of their rareness. Antique furnitures like sofas, mirrors,tables or even century-old coins, ancient Books, ancient photographs, clocks and so on.

To make money at home in the collectible market you have to make sure you have the necessary knowledge to understand the value of the items that you sell.

Antiques are sold in antique shops around the World. On the other hand, buying and selling of antiques from online antiques stores is very popular. The value of antiques are becoming higher as time passes by. You can sell them as you would any other product on eBay.

One of the reasons for such collection is due to its financial reward for collectors devoted to buying and selling. If you enjoy interesting things around you whether you're in it for money or love, you have to start somewhere.