Internet Case Study

1.Who owns the site?

Ebay is a public company and therefore it is owned by it's share holders. 

However, the founder of Ebay is called Pierre Omidyar.

2. Do they also own any traditional media businesses?

Ebay does not own any traditional media businesses.

3. What other internet sites do they own?

Ebay does not own any other internet sites.

4. What is its revenue?

Ebay revenue is 14.07 billion.

5. What is its overall worth?

Ebay overall worth is about 60 billion

6. Research five key facts about the institution.

• Ebay is a world wide online market place with 223 million customers.

• Ebay global presence is in 37 markets including United States.

• The website was launched in the UK in October 1999
• "Ebay estimates that 178,000 users run a business or use eBay as their primary or secondary source of income"
• "40.62% of active internet users visit Ebay at least once a month"

7. Summarise two linked Wikipedia articles

The first linked Wikipedia article is about how to build a trust with and improve shopping experience. http://knowwpcarey.com/article.cfm?cid=25&aid=1171 The article includes information about Ebay and the amount of people who use it to buy their shopping or any other items. The article states how Ebay is one of the biggest and longest company which has become a success in collecting and using data. The second article focuses on animal and wildlife products.  http://pages.ebay.com/help/policies/wildlife.html The article explains how a certain amount of wildlife products are allowed due to the governments concern.

8. List the key info provided on the company’s corporate homepage.

"Launched in the UK in October 1999, eBay.co.uk is the UK's largest online marketplace"

"eBay.co.uk has over 14 million active users"

"eBay.co.uk has achieved the 10 million live listings landmark, meaning there are more than 10 million items for sale on the site at any one time"

eBay estimates that 178,000 users run a business or use eBay as their primary or secondary source of income (eBay.co.uk data, January 2008)

Reference : http://pages.ebay.co.uk/aboutebay/thecompany/companyoverview.html

9. Find three quotes (with references) about the institution.

• "Many complaints have been made about eBay's system of dealing with fraud, leading to its being featured on the British consumer rights television program Watchdog" (Reference http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_eBay)
• "Selling is very competitive but rewarding. Its a risk at times trying to make a profit off items I buy for cheap, but more than half of the time I come off on top. Selling on eBay is a thrill" (Reference: http://www.indeed.com/cmp/Ebay/reviews)
• "I love buying on Ebay, But selling is not so fun. The charges for selling are just a bit to steep now days. But all in all its a good website"  (Reference: http://www.trustpilot.co.uk/review/www.ebay.co.uk)