WSJ’s article provides a different angle to eBay’s success: “For financially strapped Americans, eBay is a new way to raise emergency funds during a downturn that is costing many people their jobs and savaging stock portfolios. In past financial crises, people have sold cars, jewelry and stocks to help make ends meet. But in the age of eBay, household clutter is a liquid asset with its own global exchange.”
Adds WSJ: “The liquidity and global reach of the eBay marketplace has made the site a kind of commodities exchange for everything — including items that would otherwise be destined for the Dumpster…EBay’s ability to efficiently satisfy even the most eccentric desires of shoppers — and match them with sellers — is one reason the company appears recession-proof.”
