eBay: Implication of the Web for Future Business
eBAY: Implications of the Web for Future Business
Timothy
MBA6004
Foundational Skills for Business Leaders
Instructor: Pamela Solberg-Tapper
INTRODUCTION At first glance looking at eBay today you would never think that it started from a simple, comical background. (Hsiao, 2014) states, “Lacking is the glamour of the hotshot entrepreneurial firm and high-voltage venture capital so commonly seen in other companies that are babies of the dot-com bubble”. EBay ‘s origin begins with a simple online home page and a broken laser pointer for sale (Hsiao, 2014). In September of 1995 Pierre Omidyar, a 28-year-old software developer, developed a software code of his own origin that eventually became what we know as eBay today. Originally called AuctionWeb and hosted on the same server as Pierre 's page about the Ebola virus, the site began with the listing of a single broken laser pointer (Bunnell, 2000). Pierre’s sole purpose for listing the laser pointer was to use it as a test item with no intention of making a profit, and to his surprise, the laser pointer sold for more than it was worth at a final cost of $14.83. AuctionWeb eventually gained control of the domain, www.ebay.com, also know as Echo Bay. After purchasing the company and providing it with more resources than the typical online business, eBay begin to grow and prosper along with taking over a market that had few competitors. Although Pierre had allowed the company to be bought out he still maintained some control and over the course of a few years he amassed a fortune, after taking eBay public, of over five billion dollars. EBay employs over 50,000 people worldwide and has a user base of over 100,000,000. The company has an estimated 1,500,000, sellers around the world, to include major businesses, which use eBay as a primary source of income or as a secondary source of income. EBay has a 3 step buying process: register, research, and buy! Within the buying
Timothy
MBA6004
Foundational Skills for Business Leaders
Instructor: Pamela Solberg-Tapper
INTRODUCTION At first glance looking at eBay today you would never think that it started from a simple, comical background. (Hsiao, 2014) states, “Lacking is the glamour of the hotshot entrepreneurial firm and high-voltage venture capital so commonly seen in other companies that are babies of the dot-com bubble”. EBay ‘s origin begins with a simple online home page and a broken laser pointer for sale (Hsiao, 2014). In September of 1995 Pierre Omidyar, a 28-year-old software developer, developed a software code of his own origin that eventually became what we know as eBay today. Originally called AuctionWeb and hosted on the same server as Pierre 's page about the Ebola virus, the site began with the listing of a single broken laser pointer (Bunnell, 2000). Pierre’s sole purpose for listing the laser pointer was to use it as a test item with no intention of making a profit, and to his surprise, the laser pointer sold for more than it was worth at a final cost of $14.83. AuctionWeb eventually gained control of the domain, www.ebay.com, also know as Echo Bay. After purchasing the company and providing it with more resources than the typical online business, eBay begin to grow and prosper along with taking over a market that had few competitors. Although Pierre had allowed the company to be bought out he still maintained some control and over the course of a few years he amassed a fortune, after taking eBay public, of over five billion dollars. EBay employs over 50,000 people worldwide and has a user base of over 100,000,000. The company has an estimated 1,500,000, sellers around the world, to include major businesses, which use eBay as a primary source of income or as a secondary source of income. EBay has a 3 step buying process: register, research, and buy! Within the buying
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