In a surprise announcement, uBid - an auction site best known for its consumer electronics and computer listings - said it has closed its Consumer Exchange (C2C) channel. uBid's Consumer Exchange was similar to eBay's model where an individual or business could post auctions on the site. uBid offered two other channels in addition to Consumer Exchange and will continue them.

uBid DIRECT offers uBid's own merchandise, which it purchases directly from manufacturers. uBid PREFERRED PARTNERS offers merchandise on behalf of manufacturers, which retain ownership of the goods and must warehouse and ship the items to the buyers.

The Consumer Exchange channel had trouble gaining traction. This time last year, uBid said daily listings in the Consumer Exchange had only reached 6,500. Auction sellers favored eBay and saw offerings listed by uBid and its preferred partners as competition to Consumer Exchange offerings. uBid also took on more of a role as middleman, including collecting payments from buyers and forwarding them on to sellers.

uBid also said it will launch uBid Electronics Superstore channel in late November. The Superstore will offer new brand-name offerings at fixed-prices in consumer electronics, computers and peripherals. uBid Electronics Superstore will also include new movie DVDs and computer and software games, items previously unavailable to consumers through uBid’s site. A holiday promotion will reduce shipping expenses on orders through the uBid Electronics Superstore channel to $2.49 per order.

uBid is a majority-owned operating company of CMGI, Inc.

http://www.ubid.com

Clarification (11/20/02): uBid's Preferred Partners program was discontinued this year.