Tag: john donahoe

Mobile commerce to get more physical with eBay’s help

| May 3, 2013

eBay Mobile Commerce

eBay continues to shine the limelight on mobile commerce

For several years, eBay has dominated the e-commerce scene, with only Amazon considered to be its most significant competitor. The online retailer has put a great deal of emphasis in improving the online shopping experience of consumers and has recently begun to embrace more commerce in an aggressive fashion. Indeed, eBay anticipates that mobile commerce will account for a significant portion of its sales in the coming years. This week, CEO John Donahoe outlined plans to take the company in a relatively new direction: Offline commerce.

Retailer aims to blur the lines between physical and digital commerce

Donahoe is eager to bridge the gap between the digital and physical worlds when it comes to commerce. This has been accomplished to some degree by eBay already through the adoption of mobile commerce. Consumers shopping for products from their mobile devices have shown how blurry the lines between physical and digital retail have become. This summer, eBay plans to partner with several retailers in order to make mobile commerce have an even more tangible presence in the real world.

Pop up shops gaining notice

According to Donahoe, eBay will be working to support “pop up” shops this year. The idea behind pop up shops is somewhat simple: A store front that can be located anywhere and sell products online to those using mobile devices. These shops are becoming more popular in the retail industry, especially when it comes to retailers trying to reach out to busy consumers. In 2011, UK retailer Tesco created a pop up shop in South Korea, where QR codes where used to sell products to consumers using public transit. eBay has plans to follow in Tesco’s footsteps to some degree.

New York may soon have new pop up shops

The online retailer will be leveraging the power of QR codes in order to sell products. These codes can be scanned by a mobile device to initiate a mobile transaction. The products are then delivered to a consumer’s home or elsewhere as defined by the customer. PayPal and eBay already have strong ties to several physical retailers and expect that this initiative will be well received. The retailer plans to launch this new initiative this year in New York.

Mobile commerce may be at risk due to US legislation

| April 23, 2013

Mobile Commerce new legislationMobile commerce could lose traction as byproduct of new legislation

It is not unusual to see businesses get involved in U.S. politics for one reason or another, but eBay is one of the companies that has avoided this involvement in the past. This is due to the fact that there are relatively few laws in the U.S. that govern the world of e-commerce, as well as that of mobile commerce. The laws that do exist have helped create an atmosphere where companies and consumers can conduct business in a balance manner. A new legislation in the U.S. is causing eBay some concern, however, and may even put a damper on the company’s interests in mobile commerce to some degree.

eBay moves to fight Marketplace Fairness Act

eBay CEO John Donahoe has taken issue with legislation known as the Marketplace Fairness Act. Donahoe claims that this legislation will put unfair burdens on all small online merchants. The legislation is designed to provide states the authority to compel online retailers to collect sales tax, even if that retailer is not based within the boundaries of a particular state. Currently, states only impose this authority on physical merchants doing business within state borders. Donahoe claims that the legislation will make it very difficult for online merchants to do business and could severely limit their ability to cater to a large, national market.

Retailer taps users to combat legislation

Donahoe has sent out emails to eBay’s 40 million users, asking for support in opposing this legislation. The legislation could potentially have a significant impact on the mobile commerce space, as it is designed specifically to address issues that exist in e-commerce. Mobile commerce is becoming increasingly popular among consumers, with many favoring to shop online and purchase products using their mobile devices rather than their computers.

Sales tax may make mobile commerce less popular

Imposing a tax on online sales without recognizing any jurisdictional boundaries may make it extremely difficult for mobile commerce to find a significant level of growth in the coming years. One of the reasons mobile commerce is so popular in the U.S. is tied directly to the popularity of e-commerce. That is that state-based sales tax is not collected through purchases made online from digital retailers.