rumblings again re: Google starting an auction site - this is from yesterdays (2.16.10) NYTimes:

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/google-hires-ebay-veteran-for-new-commerce-position/?partner=yahoofinance

February 16, 2010, 11:00 am Google Hires eBay Veteran for New Commerce Position
By MIGUEL HELFT
Google said Tuesday that Stephanie Tilenius was joining the company as vice president of commerce, a new position.

Google said little about the role of Ms. Tilenius, a veteran eBay executive who announced in late September that she would leave that company. People close to Google said Ms. Tilenius would oversee Google Checkout, the company’s online payments system, and other e-commerce efforts. Her hiring suggests a push by Google into online commerce, though it is not clear exactly what Google’s plans are.

If Google makes inroads into e-commerce, it could cause headaches for a number of online retailers, as many of them get a majority of their traffic from Google, both through Web search and search ads. EBay, for example, relies on Google for much of its traffic and is one of the biggest advertisers on Google. The two companies’ relationship has already had its rocky moments, as Google positioned Checkout as a rival to PayPal, eBay’s online payment service.

Ms. Tilenius held a variety of executive roles at eBay since arriving there in 2001. Most recently, she ran eBay North America and global product management for eBay Marketplaces. Earlier, she headed PayPal’s merchant services business and ran eBay Motors and eBay Asia Pacific and Latin America. She was a co-founder of PlanetRx.com, an early e-commerce company.

EBay announced the departure of Ms. Tilenius as part of a reorganization in September, saying she would leave the company by early this year..."

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My thoughts - Google would be smart to pursue preliminary groundwork for an online auction site (which they may have, in Arizona couple years ago), and to hire experts in the field - especially from eBay (which they just did with Ms Tilenius, and others in the recent past), and to take it slow and methodical (which they are - these rumors and multiple online petitions have been circulating for years now), but be savvy enough to know when to strike while the iron is hot (which, it is, especially with eBay about to turn the fee-world upside down the first of April - or is it May - either way, it's going to be interesting to see how many "fall out" of eBay over the next couple of months).

Personally, I would welcome Google - the presence alone would wake up and shake up the online sales industry - cause those who exist to sharpen up their image, and sharpen their marketing tactics. And raising cane and fees like eBay is about to do is not good marketing. In fact, it just may finally be the death knell for eBay - especially if Google announces an auction site in the next month.