Facebook Marketplace to take on eBay and Craigslist
eBay shares fall two per cent after social giant announces new feature letting users buy and sell online
Facebook has launched a new feature putting it in direct competition with online sellers such as eBay, Craigslist and Gumtree, reports the BBC.
Facebook Marketplace, which allows users to buy and sell items locally, will go head-to-head with eBay, whose shares fell two per cent after Mark Zuckerberg's firm announced the launch.
The feature will debut in the US, the UK, Australia and New Zealand. Facebook will not be involved in the payment process and will not charge for putting items up for sale, at least not at this stage.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Users can already buy and sell through various Facebook groups, which are visited by more than 450 million people each month.
"In recent years, more people have been using Facebook to connect in another way: buying and selling with each other," said Mary Ku, director of product management.
Although the move is seen as a modest one, The Guardian says Facebook could be trying to use its "gargantuan audience of 1.71 billion monthly users to upend the local sales market completely".
However, adds the paper, it is "notoriously hard" to assess the scale of this "established and already-crowded marketplace".
This is Facebook's second attempt at an online marketplace – its 2007 effort failed to take off.
Shares in the company rose 0.1 per cent to $128.39 in New York yesterday.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How cybercriminals are hacking into the heart of the US economy
Speed Read Ransomware attacks have become a global epidemic, with more than $18.6bn paid in ransoms in 2020
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
Language-learning apps speak the right lingo for UK subscribers
Speed Read Locked-down Brits turn to online lessons as a new hobby and way to upskill
By Mike Starling Published
-
Brexit-hobbled Britain ‘still tech powerhouse of Europe’
Speed Read New research shows that UK start-ups have won more funding than France and Germany combined over past year
By Mike Starling Published
-
Playing Cupid during Covid: Tinder reveals Britain’s top chat-up lines of the year
Speed Read Prince Harry, Meghan Markle and Dominic Cummings among most talked-about celebs on the dating app
By Joe Evans Last updated
-
Brits sending one less email a day would cut carbon emissions by 16,000 tonnes
Speed Read UK research suggests unnecessary online chatter increases climate change
By Joe Evans Published
-
Reach for the Moon: Nokia and Nasa to build 4G lunar network
Speed Read Deal is part of the US space agency’s plan to establish human settlements on the lunar surface
By Mike Starling Last updated
-
iPhone 12 launch: what we learned from the Apple ‘Hi, Speed’ event
Speed Read Tech giant unveils new 5G smartphone line-up
By Mike Starling Last updated
-
Russian agency behind US election meddling ‘created fake left-wing news site’
Speed Read Facebook says real reporters were hired by fake editors to write about US corruption
By Holden Frith Published