NEW YORK – Immediately following the signing of its 700th auction-house client (Heritage Auction Galleries), Manhattan-based LiveAuctioneers LLC has publicly released details of its plans to launch an independent online-bidding platform.
“After a very successful and mutually beneficial 5½ -year partnership with eBay Live Auctions, LiveAuctioneers.com is going to be operating as a separate entity, utilizing its own platform to create what is sure to be the future of the online art, antiques and collectibles marketplace,” said LiveAuctioneers’ CEO, Julian R. Ellison. “We expect the changeover to take effect on or before Dec. 31, which is the date that our current platform provider, eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY), anticipates winding down its eBay Live Auctions division.” (EBay’s announcement may be viewed at: http://www2.ebay.com/aw/core/200804151300402.html).
Ellison stressed that as the transition is taking place, there will be no disruption to either Internet bidding capability or the many support services LiveAuctioneers presently provides to 700 auction houses worldwide. “The Internet bidding process will actually become more streamlined, from start to finish, and will reinforce LiveAuctioneers’ position as the leading live-auction facilitator. We expect auction houses, and those who bid online in their sales, will be very pleased with our new business model, which will essentially turn LiveAuctioneers into a highly efficient, one-stop shop for both buyer and seller.” Ellison also emphasized that existing auction-house clients will continue to benefit from LiveAuctioneers’ proprietary database of 2.5 million active buyers, as will all other auction houses who sign on with the company, whether or not they have previously used either LiveAuctioneers or eBay Live Auctions.
In anticipation of the changeover, LiveAuctioneers recently introduced its Web-based software suite, which was custom-designed by the company’s engineers to accommodate the specific “back office” needs of auction houses. “The software was in development for more than a year,” said Ellison, “and I can very confidently state that it is, without question, the finest product available to auctioneers anywhere. It will revolutionize the way auction houses handle their inventory and after-sale transactions, and, of course, it interfaces seamlessly with both our new platform and the eBay Live Auctions platform currently in use.”
As part of its expansion program, LiveAuctioneers continues to forge strong partnerships with media giants like Hachette Filipacchi, the world’s largest magazine publisher; and QM4G Media, an affiliated company that produces high-quality digital magazines focused on antiques and fine art. LiveAuctioneers’ own weekly e-mail newsletter is a widely read resource that features highlights from past and upcoming sales conducted by its auction-house clients. To coordinate its media representation and fortify its present and future position in the marketplace, LiveAuctioneers has retained the services of high-profile public relations specialists 5W PR, named one of the fastest-growing agencies of its type by the respected public relations news service O’Dwyer’s.
About LiveAuctioneers:
LiveAuctioneers.com was founded in November 2002. At any given time, LiveAuctioneers.com has between 60,000 and 100,000 lots listed on eBay. The combined value of the current lots listed on LiveAuctioneers.com is more than $2.2 billion. A 2006 report named LiveAuctioneers.com the second most visited auction-related website for fine art, antiques and collectibles, following only eBay.