Where is eBay (EBAY) going these days? Sure, the online auctioneer has the same brand power it's had for years, but the transition to bulk discounter from garage-sale auction house hasn't really occurred like CEO John Donahoe wanted it to.

Instead, we see eBay's marketplace still filled with one-off auctions for all kinds of goods (and junk trading hands) along with thousands of Chinese-based bulk sellers selling everything for a few dollars each.

There has recently been an interesting development at eBay (EBAY). It seems that at some point while the New Orleans Saints were winning their championship rings, someone snuck through the halls of eBay and pulled all the listings for back issues of that perennial herb magazine, High Times.

Of course, some well meaning souls immediately began complaining about First Amendment infringement. However, unless the eBay ban on High Times was initiated by government interests, there are no viable complaints on that score. eBay is an independent business and may ban whatever classes of goods it may so choose.

Craig Newmark testified on Thursday that he regretted getting into bed with auction site eBay (EBAY) almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. The founder of Craigslist, the online classified site that has decimated large chunks of the newspaper industry, sold 28% of his company to eBay in August 2004. Within months, he recounted, eBay began to pull back on its promises, causing him to regret the decision.

During the negotiations more than five years ago, Meg Whitman, who was the CEO at the time, told Newmark that eBay would be happy to sit back as a minority shareholder for several years and use Craigslist as its exclusive venue for classified ads. Yet, shortly after the deal closed, eBay pushed for a bigger piece of the company and acquired an online classified company outside the United States. Both Whitman and company founder Pierre Omidyar testified that eBay was clear about its intentions.

The lawsuit, filed by eBay against Craigslist, involves the size of the former's minority stake in the privately held, relatively low-tech and highly popular classified site. eBay claims that Newmark diluted its share to 24% through a "self-dealing" scheme to issue more equity.

"In a move that has long been expected, eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) is selling Skype," reports Paul Tracy. In his Street Authority Market Advisor he reviews the deal and his bullish outlook on eBay.

"According to terms of the deal, the internet-based phone service will fall under the ownership of a private syndicate for about $1.9 billion.

"Former CEO Meg Whitman orchestrated the acquisition of Skype back in 2005 as a means of communication between buyers and sellers. And the service has attracted hordes of subscribers in a short period of time.

This post is part of our feature on Money Losers of 2008. See all 20.

Willard Mitt Romney, governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007, was the wealthiest of all the 2008 presidential candidates. When he formally announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for president on February 13, 2007, the former venture capitalist was believed to have amassed a fortune worth as much as $250 million.

After the first fundraiser for his presidential campaign committee on January 9, 2007, Romney had already brought in $6.5 million, more than the amounts raised by any other Republican contender. Meg Whitman, CEO of eBay and a former colleague of Romney, signed on as a financial co-chair of his presidential campaign. And first quarter 2007 fund-raising information showed Romney leading the Republican field with more than $23 million, though that was less than funds raised by Democratic contenders Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in the same period. Fund-raising results for the second quarter revealed that Romney had lent $8.9 million to his campaign from his personal funds, as well as that he had spent $20.7 million, more than any other Republican candidate. By the end of 2007, he had raised $88.5 million, but $35.4 million of that came from his own pocket.

Winning the money race, strategically outspending other candidates on advertising in the early primary states, and promising to donate his salary as president to charity (as he had done as governor) wasn't enough to secure Romney the nomination. He dropped out of the race after disappointing Super Tuesday results in February 2008, when opponent John McCain solidified his position as the party's frontrunner. Romney won only 11 state primaries and caucuses, 4.7 million votes, and 291 delegates. According to Federal Election Commission filings, all told, the campaign spent $113.6 million, $44.6 of which came from Romney himself.

One of the few things that Barack Obama and John McCain agreed on during last night's televised debate was that billionaire Warren Buffett would make a good Secretary of the Treasury.

Odds are that the universally respected Buffett won't take the job. Why does he need the headache at this point in his life? Besides, he may not be the type of government official investors would like. Much to the horror of political conservatives, the Oracle of Omaha is backing Obama. He has come out against such bedrock Republican principles as abolishing the so-called death tax on inherited wealth. The financial disclosure requirements alone probably are enough to scare Buffett away from government service.

To counter Obama's Buffett card, McCain said that former eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) CEO Meg Whitman might be the right person for the job. I guess no one mentioned to the Arizona senator the massive layoffs planned by the online auctioneer. Interesting how another McCain supporter, ex-Hewlett Packard Co. (NASDAQ: HPQ) Chief Executive Carly Fiorina, did not merit consideration. Given her disastrous tenure, it's no wonder.

Another good potential Treasury Secretary neither brought up is Michael Bloomberg. The founder of Bloomberg LP (where I worked for seven years) clearly knows the markets. He's rich and has shown savvy in navigating New York City's political landmines that Washington should be a walk in the park. Too bad he's got his heart set on a third time as mayor.

Over the past ten years, eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY)'s CEO, Meg Whitman, has had a love / hate relationship with eBay users. No matter what your personal thoughts are regarding Whitman, you have to give it to her; she did take eBay to levels no one would have dreamed possible just ten years ago.

Well, her tenure at eBay is coming to an end, and her next move is into politics, working high up in Senator John McCain's Presidential campaign.

Back in January, Whitman announced that she would be stepping down from eBay to pursue philanthropy and politics, and her first big step is going to be serving as co-chair of Senator McCain's national presidential campaign.

While we still have not reached the point of McCain being announced the official Republican candidate for the upcoming election, it is all but a forgone conclusion that McCain is going to be the Republican's choice for November's pivotal election in America. After a rocky eight years with George Bush running the show, the Republicans are definitely going to have their hands full with this year's election, and Whitman is coming on board to have a leading role in the campaign's financing and policy development.

When we took a look at eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY)'s fourth-quarter earnings last night, we also made note that long-time CEO Meg Whitman would be stepping down, to be replaced by John Donahoe. We wondered what changes Mr. Donahoe would be bringing to his new position, and some of those answers have come quicker than we expected, as Donahoe has already announced a few changes that we can expect to see.

One thing consistently on the mind of eBay users is the website's fee structures. Since last year, users have been openly voicing their disappointment with what they consider to be abnormally high selling fees, and it seems like Donahoe will quickly look to address these concerns.

Donahoe said that within a few weeks, we will be seeing a brand new fee structure from eBay. In response to what users are demanding, eBay is planning to lower its upfront listing fees, but at the same time will be raising final selling fees. These final fees are only paid once an item has been successfully sold, and I am sure that users will not like to hear this too much, but they should be happy to hear that the initial listing fees are going to be reduced.

Shares of e-commerce giant eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) are trading around 7% lower in after hours trading today following its fourth quarter earnings release shortly after the market close.

As I looked at in my earnings preview, the company has been struggling to keep up with the competition in its auction business. Two key components that have hurt eBay's auction business are (1) raising fees that have left some of the company's long term users looking for other venues to do their business, and (2) large number of fraudulent items on the site.

The company announced that its fourth quarter numbers were actually better than Wall Street had expected, with earnings per share of 45 cents per share, easily topping the 41 cents that analysts had been expecting to see.

eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) is recently trading at $26.55 in pre-open trading, below its close of $28.33. EBAY is expected to report EPS of 41 cents on February 23, according to Thomson First Call. The Wall Street Journal reported CEO Meg Whitman plans to retire, according to sources. Thomas Weisel says, "All eyes on the 2008 pricing structure." EBAY February option implied volatility of 58 is above its 26-week average of 38 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Australian resources firm BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE: BHP) is unlikely to up its $99.22B bid to acquire mining company Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE: RTP), according to the Wall Street Journal.
• Ten years after taking the reins at eBay Inc (NASDAQ: EBAY), CEO Meg Whitman is making plans to retire, reported the Wall Street Journal. Company president John Donahoe is the leading candidate to replace her.
• According to the Financial Times, Biogen Idec Incorporated (NASDAQ: BIIB) CEO Jim Mullen said the company could make a "large-scale acquisition" this year after it failed to sell itself.

WEB SITES:

• Finance companies including Citigroup Incorporated (NYSE: C) could sell proprietary investments in India as they struggle to shore up their capital after suffering losses in the subprime sector in the U.S., LiveMint.com reported.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting [subscription required] that eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) CEO Meg Whitman could be preparing to retire, possibly within the next few weeks.

John Donahoe, who has been president of eBay's auction business since 2005, is sought to be the most likely candidate to succeed Ms. Whitman, who has been CEO for nearly 10 years.

Overall, Ms. Whitman has done an admirable job as CEO of the company, as evidenced by the stock's strong performance since its IPO. But over the past five years, shares of eBay have provided essentially flat performance as the company struggles to find ways to deal with slowing growth in the auction business.

Shortly after joining the company, Whitman said that no CEO should stay more than 10 years because a fresh perspective is needed at that point. With her 10 year anniversary approaching in March, she could be staying true to her word.

If she does in fact retire, look for her to stay active working on the presidential bid of Mitt Romney, whom she worked with at Bain Capital.

MarketWatch writer Dan Gallagher offered a brief synopsis of comments by Bear Stearns analyst Robert Peck in reaction to Peck's January 17 upgrade of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY). In my opinion, Gallagher was too kind with his writing. Peck's comments are a weak attempt to cloud perceptions, nothing more. Let's take a look at some of those words, shall we?

In using a pendulum metaphor, Peck refers to eBay investors as being either greedy or fearful. I believe that to mean he thinks investors who sold in the $40 range were greedy and investors who are now resisting the $30 mark live in fear. I give more credit to the investors in their reaction to issues we've discussed. Mr.Peck seems to think they've overreacted on both ends.

Robert Peck offered the statement that, "eBay's issues have been overly accounted for" as if eBay's issues comprise a tangible, one time composite. I'll tell you as fact that eBay's negative issues are active and on going. You've read the news and I think you sense that there's much pressure coming in. Amazon clipped eBay's holiday season page views. Ticket selling competitors are on the prowl. Skype still flounders without declared intent and Meg Whitman is now toying with exit plans.

Peck concedes that eBay could be affected by changes in consumer spending due to recession but he would like us to believe that increased bargain hunting will offset possible negative affects. What he doesn't mention is that a bargain binge could deeply affect the bottom line of PayPal, eBay's lion-hearted revenue generator. We must also not forget that a checkout service has taken hold via Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) and now we're hearing whispers of increased payment services from Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN).

PAPERS:

• With shares of eBay Inc (NASDAQ: EBAY) down 17% from their highs in 2007, CEO Meg Whitman is more than likely on her way out, TheDeal Blogs speculated.
• According to sources, International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) is in advanced talks to acquire the Israeli start-up XIV for 4300M-$350M, Globes reported.
• According to sources in London and New York, Merrill Lynch and Co Inc's (NYSE: MER) CEO, John Thain, is in talks with Chinese and Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds this weekend, which could lead to the sale of another big stake in the U.S. bank, the Observer reported.

WEB SITES:

• According to motherboard makers, DigiTimes reported that Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NYSE: AMD) may have the upper hand against Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA) in the next IGP chipset battle.
• iLounge learned that Apple Inc (NASDAQ: APPL) is planning a push for iTunes tagging-ready, HD Radio-equipped boomboxes with iPod docks and is expected to make an announcement at Macworld in mid-January.

I seriously enjoy reading Ina Steiner. She's the editor of AuctionBytes.com. I like her stuff because she's just so damn objective. She simply lays out the facts and lets you come to your own conclusions. I also like Ina because she continuously holds a very bright light directly at eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY).

Recently, Ina opened the floor at the AuctionBytes blog for discussion about the involvement of Meg Whitman in the Mitt Romney campaign. Needless to say, the situation has raised some eyebrows. Personally, I don't care what direction either Meg or Mitt choose to go. Ina's readers, however, had a very dim view of the situation. My question is, has Meg's insurgence into the political realm affected the shareholders of eBay?

Forget for a moment all the ill conceived plans that eBay has tripped over. Ignore the Skype debacle, the eBay China crash, the silencing of Stubhub and the host of other demons that in my opinion the Whitman crew has set loose, buried or denied. Forget for a moment about all that cash flowing into eBay coffers with nothing better accomplished than to outsource customer service and to pay Whitman's salary. Ignore the wolf at the door in the form of Amazon Inc.(NASDAQ: AMZN). Never mind that eBay has lost its shine and reputation and is yet to pay a dividend to its shareholders. I'm talking about presidential politics and corporate wrangling here.