AOL, eBay launch auctions across multiple brands

America Online and eBay today debuted four cobranded Web sites, building on the successful launch of their cobranded auction site earlier this year.

Users of AOL.com, CompuServe, ICQ, and Digital City will be able to access eBay and begin participating in auctions in the Internet's most active trading community. The services will integrate eBay's auction with the navigational aids found in the AOL properties.

The launch marks the latest in a series of joint efforts between the two companies dating back to December 1997.

In March, eBay and AOL announced a four-year strategic alliance designed to expand personal trading and community building on AOL properties. In August, the two firms launched a cobranded Web site for the AOL proprietary service, giving AOL's more than 19 million members easy access to eBay's dynamic marketplace.

"Through these new cobranded sites, users of AOL.com, CompuServe, ICQ, and Digital City will have easier access to the largest person-to-person trading community in cyberspace," Myer Berlow, AOL's president of interactive marketing, said in a statement.

"AOL members have already been enjoying the cobranded AOL-eBay site, and now users of our other brands will have an even more convenient way to browse and shop."