Press
February 2010
19 February 2010
eBay Brings Travel to its Customers
Strategic partnership with Octopus Travel is first step in expansion of eBay’s Travel category
eBay Advertising today announces it will expand its Travel category to deliver increased value and selection to eBay’s 17 million users, across a range of travel products and services. As a first step in this expansion, online hotel provider Octopus Travel today joins forces with eBay to deliver over 50,000 hotel listings to users through the UK’s biggest online marketplace.
The strategic partnership with Octopus Travel will see eBay deliver new benefits to the millions of people who visit eBay every day, through a co-branded store that offers over 50,000 hotel room listings from independent hotels to global chains, with auction-style listings from £0.99, ‘buy it now’ deals, hotel upgrades and special offers.
The Octopus Travel store will be promoted to the millions of people who visit the eBay marketplace every day, through a combination of paid search and targeted advertising across the eBay network.
To mark the partnership, eBay is launching with a special charity auction in aid of youth charity, The Prince’s Trust. Until the end of January visitors to eBay.co.uk will be able to bid on over thirty Presidential Suites throughout the InterContinental Hotels & Resorts global hotel network with listings starting at just 99p.
Gareth Gaston, Managing Director of Octopus Travel, comments: “As the leading online marketplace, eBay was the perfect choice in helping us reach consumers who are actively looking for hotel options. We’re delighted to be working with eBay to deliver choice, selection and value to eBay’s millions of users”.
Phillip Rinn, Director of Advertising Partnerships for eBay in the UK and EMEA, said: “We see massive growth potential in the travel sector online, which is why we’re investing in our network to offer brands like Octopus Travel the opportunity to engage with e-buying consumers in a very targeted and relevant way. We’re excited to be partnering with Octopus Travel to deliver benefits to our users and we look forward to the further expansion of our travel category throughout 2010 and beyond”.
With more than 17 million unique users and 3.3 billion total page views per month in the UK alone, plus millions more across Europe, eBay offers brand advertisers the powerful combination of reach and deep targeting of purchase-minded consumers on the web.
The store is available at http://ebay.octopustravel.com/
For more information on eBay Advertising visit www.ebayadvertising.com.
19 February 2010
Microsoft partners with eBay to offer ‘Daily Deals’
Windows Internet Explorer 8 offers features to enhance the eBay online shopping experience
Microsoft and eBay are partnering to offer ‘Daily Deals’, where selected items from eBay will be showcased online at discounted prices, through a new Internet Explorer 8 Web Slice. Customers will receive updates and detailed information on the Daily Deals in their Favourites Bar in Internet Explorer 8.
Internet Explorer 8 has a number of new features to offer benefits to eBay shoppers. These include InPrivate browsing, which allows consumers to shop online without leaving information behind for others to find on shared computers.
Phillip Rinn, International Advertising Director at eBay Advertising, comments: “Our recent research on the shopping habits of millions of e-buying consumers revealed 85% will maintain or increase their online shopping this year, so providing the best possible service for these shoppers is essential. The new Web Slice makes it faster and easier than ever to find eBay’s most exciting offers of the day.”
“Our customers tell us they want a browser that puts them in control of their security and privacy, and those are key ingredients to a positive online experience,” says Amy Barzdukas, General Manager of Internet Explorer, Microsoft Corp. “Internet Explorer 8 delivers the best modern browsing experience for Windows, and the eBay “Daily Deals” Web Slice is just one more great reason to upgrade.”