EBay Makes Fee Changes Aimed At Boosting Fixed-Price Sales

SAN FRANCISCO -(Dow Jones)- In a dramatic shift away from its online auction business, eBay Inc. (EBAY) on Wednesday said it was cutting fixed-price listing fees by more than 70%, a move aimed at making the e-commerce giant more competitive with retail rivals such as Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN)

The changes are the latest in a series of recent moves that the struggling online auctioneer has taken to revamp its business, which has slowed as shoppers have gravitated to fixed-price retailers.

"Buyers are voting with their wallets," said spokesman Usher Lieberman. "They want more fixed-price offerings."

Lieberman quickly added that eBay was not walking away from its online auction business, which made the company one of the Internet's most popular destinations for much of the past decade.

Fixed-price sales accounted for 43% of the total value of good's sold on eBay in the last quarter and are growing at 60% a year, making fixed-price the fastest growing part of the company's business. The listing fee changes announced on Wednesday were expected to accelerate the shift toward eBay's fixed-price business.

Amazon generates revenue from sales commissions, rather than relying on the listing fees that typically made up the bulk of eBay's revenue.

EBay Makes Fee Changes Aimed At Boosting Fixed-Price Sales....