Town Not Really Sold On eBay To Actually Be Sold On eBay?

from the about-time dept

Okay, following the bouncing publicity attempt here... Back in 2002, we noted how you could buy a small, mostly deserted, town on eBay, and how selling odd things on eBay was becoming a way of getting extra publicity. Except... it didn't work. That town that supposedly sold for $1.8 million didn't really sell on eBay, highlighting the downside to using eBay as a platform for publicity: you get a bunch of bogus bidders. Whoever bid $1.8 million never actually showed up to claim the town (and certainly never provided the money). Instead, a year later, the town had to be sold via conventional methods for about $700,000 -- much less than the original eBay bid. A couple of years have gone by, and the new owner has made some improvements and is betting that this time he can actually sell the town on eBay, and has put it up for bid. Once again, this move is attracting the attention of the press... and we'll find out soon if it also attracts the attention of the bogus bidders.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. identicon
    A Person, 20 Mar 2006 @ 2:30am

    Selling...

    I guess it's easier than selling convetionally...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    awwtbone, 20 Mar 2006 @ 2:46am

    Wow. Go Ebay....

    The Unlimited Possibilities Of Ebay. What Can't you buy on Ebay....

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    farlane, 20 Mar 2006 @ 3:04am

    How much for the pets?

    Bridgeville, a picturesque village with about 25 people on the Van Duzen River - wow, people too! It's like the Sims!

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 20 Mar 2006 @ 9:22am

    Do I get free shipping?

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    wirename.com, 20 Mar 2006 @ 9:37am

    Extremely rare hard to find Stork with Name

    Extremely rare hard to find stickpin Stork with Name. You can search all of ebay, the entire internet and chances are you won't get your hands on this incredible pin. This item is even can't find in stores only at wirename.com

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.