Study shows eBay buyers save billions of dollars

STUDY SHOWS eBAY BUYERS SAVE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS
[SOURCE: Reuters, AUTHOR: Eric Auchard]
Buyers save billions of dollars each year bidding on eBay auctions, according to a new study that quantifies the benefits online consumers enjoy over and above what is derived by sellers, or eBay itself. The independent research by two statisticians from the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business found buyers saved $7 billion that they might have otherwise been ready to pay in a study of eBay auction behavior in 2003. Applying the same analysis to 2004 buyer data, consumers saved $8.4 billion, said Wolfgang Jank, one author of the study. A linear projection of the research findings would mean consumers saved around $19 billion during 2007, Jank said.
http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN2742167120080128