eBay is a PITA when it comes to listing items, and it doesn't work well with Mozilla Firefox. Many times I've waited waaaay to long to access "my eBay", or even just to logout. I sell on Amazon whenever possible. High fees, but soooo much easier.
Ebay IS a monopoly and many monopolies can make big mistakes (like the Skype purchase !) and still survive and indeed thrive. The fact that Goog has not created a real Google Auction site given the breadth of their technical ability, remains a mystery.
Quasi-monopoly or niche monopoly. As other posters already stated, they can sell their wares on Amazon.com's marketplace. Ebay's a monopoly when it comes to selling used/collectible items. But I often find that when I'm selling other things like books, CD's, and electronic goods, I have a choice between Ebay and Amazon. I often choose Amazon. I get a better price than I would on Ebay and I can list longer and for free on Amazon.
Fiorina is probably not the best example, since she was fired and was considered by Wall St. to be driving HPQ into the ground. If women are considered to be worse at running companies than men, it's probably not due to a lack of brainpower. They just have to spend more of their energy trying to "prove" they belong.
Yeah...but sincerely, Wall Street is full of idiots who are well received if they make 15% in a year. Not that I think that she was a genius...but many of the changes she enacted and pushed through do seem to have helped HP in a big way.
lol, now if you told me you were shorting EBAY based on the Skank meter, then I'd have some respect. And you're at least 18 months late on the Cramer thing. I've been bashing the idiot for at least that long.
LOL... I have to agree.... not to say women are dumber than men, I just feel that natural characteristics of men make better business owners. I too agree that eBay has already pasted its prime...
I recently sold and shipped $600 of college textbooks on half.com.... however before ebay direct deposited my $$$, they limited my account for no reason stating I was "an unacceptable security risk." Even after talking to them I still have to wait 90 days for them to give me my money..... My point is that ebay has a lot of flaws in it that makes it unattrative.... i'll never attempt to buy/sell there again
There is small competition out there that will have better technology and not have to employ a gazillion people like Ebay does. Look at www.ioffer.com, it's a perfect example. Ebay has to keep jacking it's prices up to continue to grow profits, it's just a matter of time until the masses move to a cheaper alternative.