Market Currents

• Friday, December 11, 2009

• 11:06 AM Craigslist founder Craig Newmark and eBay (EBAY) CEO Jim Buckmaster take the stand today in an increasingly testy court battle. At issue: eBay's seat on Craigslist's board after the auctioneer launched classified-ad competitor Kijiji - as well as PowerPoint skills, and personal feelings about companies "going steady." 1 Comment

• Monday, November 23, 2009

• 09:50 AM eBay (EBAY +1.9%) is calculating the cost of a disruption to its auction process on Saturday after a surge in live listings prevented users from finding products on U.S. and some international sites. eBay said it will compensate sellers for affected listings. 1 Comment

• Wednesday, November 18, 2009

• 09:34 AM American Express (AXP -0.5%) says it's buying e-payment startup Revolution Money for about $300M. Revolution's PIN-activated credit cards cost merchants a fraction of the typical acceptance cost, and offer free online money transfers, a threat to eBay's (EBAY) PayPal. "While Revolution Money is a young and relatively small company, we believe it has big potential," AXP says. 1 Comment

• Friday, November 6, 2009

• 10:12 AM EBay (EBAY +0.8%) confirms it has settled with the founders of its Skype unit, clearing the way for a sale to the Silver Lake-led investor group. Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis - who established the Net-telephony business - will join the group taking majority control, but Index Ventures will no longer be included. (previously) 1 Comment

• Thursday, November 5, 2009

• 05:21 AM Private-equity investors that agreed to buy Skype from eBay (EBAY) are on the verge of settling their dispute with Skype's founders in a deal that will give them 10% of Skype and a presence on the board, in exchange for rights to the peer-to-peer technology they control and a significant amount of cash. Official announcement could come as soon as this morning. Comment!

• Wednesday, October 21, 2009

• 16:18 PM eBay (EBAY): Q3 EPS of $0.38 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $2.2B (+6%) vs. $2.1B. Shares -7.2% AH. (PR) Comment!
• 00:10 AM Notable post-market earnings: ADS, AMGN, AMP, CTXS, CVA, EBAY, EFX, FFIV, FIS, FNF, ISIL, KNX, LOGI, LRCX, NE, NFX, NVLS, OSIP, PTV, QLGC, RRC, SKX, TEX, TQNT, VMW Comment!

• Tuesday, October 6, 2009

• 16:38 PM AT&T (T) says it has taken the steps so that Apple (AAPL) can enable iPhone voice-over-IP applications to run over AT&T's 3G wireless network - which should clear the way for Google Voice (GOOG), Skype (EBAY) and other applications to transport calls over the carrier's airwaves as well as on Wi-Fi networks. Good for consumers but could strain AT&T's network even more, Dan Frommer says. (earlier) 1 Comment

• Monday, October 5, 2009

• 09:14 AM Vonage (VG) unveils a mobile app that will allow iPhone (AAPL) and BlackBerry (RIMM) users to make discounted calls. Unlike Skype (EBAY) calls, which are limited to Wi-Fi, iPhone Vonage calls will be carried by AT&T (T). VG +19% premarket. 5 Comments

• Wednesday, September 30, 2009

• 14:22 PM GM's fling with eBay (EBAY) looks to be over, at least for now, as evidence suggests it drew a lot of lookers but not a lot of buyers. And some typical online-auction behavior: One bidder submitted a $2,500 bid on a $40,000 vehicle. 4 Comments

• Thursday, September 17, 2009

• 07:30 AM The founders of Skype software file a copyright lawsuit against eBay (EBAY) and the proposed buyers of a 65% stake in Skype, alleging breach of licensing terms. eBay denies the claims, but the suit could complicate the deal which is due to close in Q4. Comment!

• Tuesday, September 1, 2009

• 13:11 PM EBay's (EBAY -2.6%) sale of Skype is for less than it paid to acquire the voice-over-IP company three years ago - and while opinions are mixed on what it means for EBay shareholders, it's almost certainly good for Skype ahead of an eventual IPO. Comment!
• 09:54 AM Sidestepping a promised IPO, eBay (EBAY +3%) confirms its sale of 65% of Skype to a group led by Silver Lake which includes Index Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz and the Canada Pension Plan. Price: $2.125B, including $1.9B in cash. Comment!
• 07:22 AM eBay (EBAY) is expected to announce it reached a deal to sell Skype to a group of private investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Index Ventures and Silver Lake Partners. The price of the deal is still unknown. Shares +2% premarket. Comment!

• Tuesday, August 11, 2009

• 09:08 AM GM and eBay (EBAY) join up on a pilot program to let consumers buy new cars by negotiating with dealers online. Currently limited to California, GM is 'predisposed' to a nationwide rollout as it tries to drum up vehicle demand. 2 Comments

• Monday, August 10, 2009

• 12:22 PM GM sets tomorrow as the launch of a pilot site with eBay (EBAY) to sell cars and trucks in California, in cooperation with about 225 dealers there. The move marks the first time that eBay will offer new vehicles for sale. The Atlantic's Derek Thompson says it's high time that haggling moved from the showroom to the laptop. 2 Comments