To: marginmike who wrote (72132 ) 5/22/2000 1:48:00 PM From: LBstocks Respond to of 152472
EBay unveils wireless strategy By Myra P. Saefong, CBS MarketWatch Last Update: 1:29 PM ET May 22, 2000 NewsWatch Latest headlines SAN JOSE, Calif. (CBS.MW) -- Online auctioneer EBay unveiled a plan to make its services available from any Web-enabled mobile device Monday. The mobile strategy, called ?EBay anywhere,? brings leading technology companies, mobile carriers, portals and hardware vendors alike in an effort to make EBay (EBAY: news, msgs) available through handheld Internet devices. Under the announced strategy, wireless Web application service provider 2Roam will format and deliver EBay?s content for ?virtually? any mobile device on any network carrier, according to an EBay press release. Separately, the San Jose, Calif.-based auctioneer announced alliances to deliver its services through Internet-ready wireless devices from Oracle (ORCL: news, msgs) unit, OracleMobile and Sprint PCS (PCS: news, msgs) Wireless Web. Shares of EBay slipped 2 1/8 to 116 1/16 in recent trading, following losses among most stocks Monday. ?Shares are down with the market,? said Lauren Cooks Levitan of Robertson Stephens, emphasizing that the fall has nothing to do with the wireless announcement. ?EBay has been one of the early leaders on the consumer side of the world in terms of developing wireless solutions for their very rapid and active community,? said Levitan. ?Today?s announcement is really a in very continuation of that, rather than a beginning of it.? ?The 2Roam technology really provides a broad-based solution regardless of the platform,? she said. ?The reality is that today, we simply don?t know what devices people will be using most frequently and in what ways they?ll want to interact with EBay.? ?2Roam will help them make sure that the EBay Anywhere will be available regardless of what happens in terms of standards and in terms of devices,? said Levitan, who has a ?buy? rating on the stock. ?EBay is one of the companies that stands to benefit greatly from increased penetration of wireless Internet usage,? she added. Other companies contributing to the EBay Anywhere strategy include AT&T Digital PocketNet Service (T: news, msgs), OmniSky Corp. and Phone.com (PHCM: news, msgs).