AERS is proud to announce a new partnership with 500RPM, a Japanese service provider for Japan-based eBay sellers. Known predominately for translation and eBay assistance solutions, 500RPM will soon provide a locally-translated Terapeak tool, along with a dedicated, Japan-based support team.

A big part of the AERS mandate has always been the importance of global brand representation, and Terapeak in particular has stressed the value of international markets. Now, with the introduction of “Terapeak Japan”, Terapeak is available locally in six countries: Canada, USA, France, Germany, China and Japan.

“We’re excited about teaming up with 500RPM,” says AERS CEO Fred Speckeen. “They’ve shown an ability to provide eBay sellers in Japan with a valuable set of services, which will now include Terapeak. The continued growth of ecommerce is a global phenomenon, and it represents an opportunity for our company to bring useful services and tools like Terapeak to a growing global community.”

The announcement complements a very international year for both AERS and Terapeak: in June, the company hosted its first international conference, while in July, founders Anthony and Andrew Sukow spoke at the G8 Young Business Summit in Stresa, Italy.

Again, AERS is happy and proud to welcome 500RPM to the Terapeak team, and we look forward to sharing news from Terapeak Japan.

Terapeak Marketplace Research, a research firm specializing in the eBay.com platform, has analyzed eBay sales from last year’s post-Christmas shopping period. More than twice as many listings closed on January 3rd than on December 19th – the last busy day before Christmas.

Have you ever given someone a mixer for Christmas? It may have ended up on eBay! Mixers were the most popular kitchen appliance sold on eBay on January 3rd. Seven day auctions were by far the most popular, but had the lowest success rate (about 40%). One, 3, and 5 day auctions all had success rates of 75% or higher! Keep in mind that January 3rd falls on a Tuesday this year. Sellers will have greater success closing their auctions in the evening (5pm to 9pm) than during the daytime.

The ever-present Apple iPod was both a popular gift to buy, as well as to sell on eBay last year. On January 3rd 2005, there was an average of 13.64 bids per successful listing! Five day auctions were the most successful (almost 90% of them closed), well above the average success rate of 57% for that day. With demand even greater this year, expect this trend to continue.

If you are a buyer looking for a great post Christmas deal, Terapeak provides a free tool that helps buyers find the best deals on eBay. It’s called SmartBuyer, and can be found at www.terapeak.com/buy.

Terapeak Marketplace Research predicts that January 3rd will again be a huge day for eBay sellers, with 2005 having been a record year for eBay sales. Terapeak has developed the most advanced research tool for analyzing eBay consumer transaction data. With over 1.4 Billion transactions in 2004, eBay is the most reliable consumer activity index in the world.

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CONTACT: Dave Frey
Terapeak Brand Manager
w. 250.483.3273
www.terapeak.com
dfrey@terapeak.com