Google vs. eBay/PayPal

That's Unpossible! writes "Google has today made a small announcement on their blog which could shake up the landscape of buying things online : they are going to start allowing certain parties to sell items through Google Base, which people can buy using credit cards linked to their Google Account. According to another blog post, Google already accepts payments in this fashion for Google Video, Google Earth, Google Store, etc. How long until Google Base is directly competing with eBay? The framework is now in place."

This is nice but...

[Acid-Duck]

Don't forget that eBay already has a HUGE customer-base established, in addition to having some odd categories which I never thought would get any attention but looking at the listings there's quite a few items already :P Not to mention that thanks to goldenpalace's advertisement stunts (ie: buying odd objects off eBay for exorbitent prices) eBay already got a pretty good spotlight on TV. Two things to keep in mind here:

- When buying the shop that has lots of selection will hold lower prices
- As a seller, I'm looking to get maximum exposure when I sell something.

Those two factors, I believe, will give google a pretty good run.

Erik

I assume

[Michalson]

That the service is going to be a Beta?

whats the framework?

[cycledance]

the internet? the google name? id love a big competitor to ebay...but its not THAT easy...

Competition is a Good Thing

[tezza]

The old arguments for Competition in the Marketplace can come out.

* Drive to innovate
* Prices closer to the actual cost of the service
* External Innovators can become suppliers as the companies get creative to win market share.

This is a good thing

[Sima]

Considering how unresponsive Paypal is and how much of a maze Ebay tries to be, when you try to contact their customer support, this can only be a good thing.

Maybe this move will force them to stop acting so arrogantly towards us, their customers. And try to provide some actual customer support.

Attract sellers

[HangingChad]

How long until Google Base is directly competing with eBay? The framework is now in place.

If Google treats sellers well, they'll be jumping ship from eBay in packs. I'm guessing eBay will lighten up on their sellers and the new equilibrium will be sellers using both services.

Competition is a good thing. More outlets for sellers is more business, also a good thing. I'd use Google before Amazon.

well that'd be a good start

[Danzigism]

somebody needs to smash ebay thats for sure.. its a wonderful thing, but they've been screwing their customers for far too long.. prices have increased, making it nearly impossible to make a profit.. I sell historical documents, and business has been gradually decreasing over the past 4 years.. Autographs in particular, you could buy a autographed photos from hollywood actors at real auctions for anywhere between $100-$5,000... The same photo you bought for $100, could be found on ebay for $10... and why is that?? Because the seller's need to drop their prices that low, because they think nobody's buying their stuff.. When in actuality, Ebay is very very very inconsistent when it comes to sales.. If you get a nice Marlon Brando signed photo, and you post it up for auction on Ebay, how do you expect every die-hard Marlon Brando fan to be on Ebay at that particular point in time?? They won't be.. And thats the problem..

in my personal opinion, Ebay has ruined the excitement from real live auctions.. but Google on the other hand.. I have a feeling that one day, Google will be one of the first things all people do in the morning.. like checking your email or the news.. a daily process.. And what if they started doing auctions?? Well just imagine having Google Alerts for auctions.. You could have a message in your Inbox saying, "Hey, some guy just put up a Marlon Brando signed photograph.. Click here to BID now".. and my problem would be solved...

Re:Risky move

[bubkus_jones]

Shut ebay down because of illegitimate auctions? What's next, shutting down the internet because it helps terrorists build weapons?

No, they can not and will not do that. There is too much of a legitimate userbase for ebay, and too many people around the world (because, as you should know, ebay is available in many countries as a subsite tailored to that specific country, featuring auctions by people in those countries) who use it daily.

Besides, if they did shut it down, another would pop up to take it's place, much like the P2P programs/networks.

Re:Bullshit FUD

[jasonditz]

there's no more legal basis for shutting eBay down because of that than there is shutting down a public school because some of the kids sell drugs in the hallways, or shutting down a Walgreens because the guy in the Santa Claus suit out front isn't really from the Salvation Army.

Re:All your base is overly broad

[generic-man]

If I want to buy something, Google web search is useless ("Find prices and read reviews for WHATEVER YOU SEARCHED FOR" 1,000 times over, each page exactly the same as the last) and Froogle is sometimes helpful. Google claims not to make any money off Froogle though. If Google started handling payments they'd have a piece of the action. Yahoo! has had storefronts for years, eBay has a huge customer base already, and PayPal (since acquired by eBay) handles money for any sort of person-to-person purchase -- auction or otherwise.

Re:This is nice but...

[vux984]

Sure, but ebay is pretty crappy

A solid competitor, or at least the threat of one, might light the fire under ebay, and make *it* a better place.

Re:This is nice but...

[slavemowgli]

eBay *is* very well-entrenched, that much is true, but eBay also sucks big time - they're expensive, unpleasant to work with, and will bow to corporate pressure (deleting your auctions because the RIAA/MPAA/BSA/... demand it without even looking at them etc). The *only* thing eBay has going for itself is the amount of users (and thus auctions).

Of course, this doesn't mean that eBay will go bankrupt when Google becomes a real competitor; there's also the possibility that they will improve their service and lower their fees. Either outcome is fine with me; the problem is not so much eBay as such (i.e., they're not inherently more evil than other companies), it's the problem that they have no competition.