EBay Launches U.S. Site for Classifieds

SAN FRANCISCO - EBay Inc. has launched a free classified advertising site in the United States, an experiment the online auction company says could lead to new sources of revenue.

Since February 2005, San Jose, Calif.-based eBay has been operating an international classified forum called Kijiji, which means "village" in Swahili. The site allows users in more than two dozen countries to buy and sell goods and services that are difficult or impossible to ship or sell on eBay, such as baby-sitting services in Montreal or a leather recliner in Beijing.

EBay's U.S. classified site, which launched last Friday, covers 220 cities in 50 states. Topics include "apartments for rent," "lost and found," "pet adoption" and "garage sales." It also includes personals sites such as "missing you," "just friends" and "activity partners."

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