EBay To Begin Auctioning Radio Ads

Online auction mogul EBay will begin auctioning Internet and terrestrial radio spots from more than 2500 providers. EBay has partnered with, privately held, Bid4Spots Inc., in the midst of a longstanding and informal boycott from the Cable Advertising Bureau. MediaPost reported that this boycott was in reaction to the "...fear that it would commoditize cable advertising buys."

This new development may usher in a new era of media buying. Bid4Spots boasts that advertisers are able to buy targeted markets, demos and day parts on Arbitron-rated stations that will air following the week of the purchase. According to USA Today, the spots being offered are going to be mostly prime spots airing Monday through Friday. However, EBay's radio auctions will target "last minute ad buyers" allowing participating stations to get real aggressive with their rates. This begins to question the value of the annually purchased media plan. This may be hazardous for a participating stations who are trying to maintain rate integrity.

Big broadcasters could now be forced to bring a bunch of value added and reduced rates to the table to off-set the lower auction prices. The other side of the coin is that unused station inventory can be dealt with any way a station sees fit. Successful concept or huge mistake? Only time will tell.