eBay rumours

Rumours are rife on Wallstreet.

"Speculation is rife on Wall Street that a big internet deal or alliance is in the works, with Google, Yahoo, eBay or Microsoft as possible partners - and a Yahoo-eBay partnership seen as most likely."

An alliance or partnership between Yahoo and eBay would create an Internet powerhouse rivalling Google.

Google, which nearly doubled its revenues last year, is expected to grow 62 per cent this year. EBay is seen growing 30 per cent, down from 50 per cent two years ago, and Yahoo's growth is slowing at a similar pace.

The strengths of Yahoo and eBay are seen as complementary, with Yahoo in media and eBay in e-commerce. Yahoo's foreign strength is in Asia and eBay's is in Europe.

The most compelling scenario is an alliance where eBay uses Yahoo search to drive consumers to eBay auctions.

In return, Yahoo could take advantage of assets such as eBay's PayPal online payments franchise and the vast Skype web telephone audience that eBay has acquired.

(By Asia Business Consulting)