eBay celebrates 10 years in Canada by inducting Canadians into Hall of Fame,
launching Free The Children charity auction and awarding $5,000 in contest
prizes

Online marketplace has supported Canadian economy since 2000

TORONTO, April 22 /CNW/ - eBay today celebrates the 10th anniversary of the launch of eBay.ca and a decade of connecting millions of buyers and sellers across the country, helping them to explore opportunities in the world of online commerce. eBay Canada marks the milestone with the induction of Canadians into the eBay Canada Hall of Fame, the launch of a charity auction to benefit Free The Children and awarding prizing worth $5,000 to contest winners. These celebration activities will recognize and reward the more than 11-million Canadians who have benefitted from eBay in special and often unique ways over the last 10 years.

Since 2000, eBay has supported the Canadian economy by facilitating billions of dollars worth of transactions online; in the last 10 years Canadians have bought more than $7-billion on eBay.

"In just 10 years eBay.ca has become an important enabler of small businesses in Canada and the premier online shopping destination for Canadian consumers," said Andrea Stairs, country manager of eBay Canada. "From a modest start in 2000, eBay.ca has grown tremendously and now helps millions of Canadians to buy and sell online with ease."

eBay Canada Hall of Fame

eBay.ca's decade of success would not be possible without its millions of passionate community members. For its anniversary celebration, eBay Canada created the eBay Canada Hall of Fame and has selected the following 10 Canadians who exemplify eBay's community values each time they buy, sell and support the marketplace.

    
    -   Canadiana: Naomi M. of Mississauga, Ontario (eBay ID: holycowcanoe)
    -   Charity: Marc and Craig Kielburger of Toronto, Ontario (eBay ID:
        freethechildrenauction)
    -   Collectables: Gordon G. of Winnipeg, Manitoba (eBay ID:
        flashtreksurfer)
    -   Community Builder: Pierre L. of Belleville, Ontario (eBay ID:
        pierrelebel)
    -   Fashion Finder: Tina R. of Kirkland, Quebec (eBay ID: fractionprices)
    -   Green Seller: Andrea A. of Montreal, Quebec (eBay ID: dol-auctions)
    -   History Lover: Dave T. of St. George, Ontario (eBay ID:
        hotrodsandhockey)
    -   Mom Entrepreneur: Tiffany L. of Victoria, British Columbia (eBay ID:
        hopeinvictoria)
    -   Partner: Canada Post (eBay ID: CPCFlatRateBox)
    -   Retailer: Henry's.com (eBay ID: henrys.com)
    

eBay Canada and Free The Children charity auction

Over the last decade eBay Canada has supported numerous causes and Canadian charities. For its tenth anniversary celebration, eBay.ca will auction off a number of high-profile items where members will have a chance to bid on once-in-a-lifetime experiences benefiting Free The Children.

To date, Free The Children has built more than 500 schools, bringing the fundamental right of education to over 50,000 children every day. The auction is live on www.ebay.ca/freethechildren and notable experiences up for grabs include:

    
    -   VIP tickets to the Justin Bieber concert at the Air Canada Centre in
        Toronto (two pairs).
    -   VIP package to the finale of So You Think You Can Dance Canada.
    -   VIP package to the finale of MuchMusic Video Awards 2010.
    -   VIP experience of The Hills Aftershow with MTV's Jessi Cruickshank.
    -   Set visit and meet the cast of Degrassi: The Next Generation.
    -   Me to We trip to Kenya for two.
    

And the winner is ...

In the spirit of celebration, eBay Canada offered its members a chance to win a total of $5,000 in prizes. Throughout the month of April members participated in a series of contests including a birthday card design competition and an online "Baywinkle the Moose" scavenger hunt. The grand prize winner is:

    
    -   Mike B. of Burlington, Ontario, for designing the winning eBay.ca
        birthday card (eBay ID: ecornered)
    

Additional prize winners are currently being notified.

eBay Canada supports the Canadian economy

    
    -   Last year, the average Canadian eBay user bought almost $400 worth of
        goods.
    -   Over the last 10 years, Canadians have bought more than $7 billion
        worth of goods on eBay.
    -   More than 5.7-million Canadians have bought an item on eBay and
        approximately 850,000 Canadians have sold an item on eBay.
    -   Since 2000, 114-million items have been sold by Canadians on eBay.
    -   A Canadian sells an item approximately every 2.2 seconds on eBay.
    

Did you know?

    
    -   eBay is the fifth largest online property in all of Canada as
        measured by comScore.
    -   Ten years ago 2.5-million Canadians visited eBay monthly; in 2010
        more than 8-million Canadians surf and shop on eBay monthly (March
        2010, comScore Media Metrix).
    -   eBay is the original social media site: eBay's community forums have
        averaged more than 1,000,000 page views since tracking started and
        eBay members have posted more than 2.5-million messages.
    -   The most expensive handbag sold by a Canadian went for US$13,000.
    -   Over the last 10 years, Canadians on eBay have bought or sold more
        than 25,000 hockey sticks.
    

About eBay Canada

Founded in 1995 in San Jose, Calif., eBay Inc. connects millions of buyers and sellers globally on a daily basis through eBay, the world's largest online marketplace, and PayPal, which enables individuals and businesses to securely, easily and quickly send and receive online payments. We also reach millions through specialized marketplaces such as StubHub, the world's largest ticket marketplace, and eBay Classifieds sites, which together have a presence in more than 1,000 cities around the world. In Canada, eBay was visited by nearly 8.3 million Canadians in March 2010. (comScore Media Metrix).

/NOTE TO PHOTO EDITORS: A photo accompanying this release is available at http://photos.newswire.ca. Images are free to accredited members of the media/

For further information: For media inquires, contact: Elisabeth Napolano, Environics Communications for eBay Canada, [email protected], [phone]; Nazia Khan, Environics Communications for eBay Canada, [email protected], [phone]