eBay wrapped up day two of its Developers Conference in Boston with a keynote session featuring a talk by several speakers, including PayPal CTO Scott Thompson. Thompson said fraud has slowed the growth of ecommerce, and he said PayPal wants to help merchants make more informed decisions about transaction payments.
Thompson said PayPal has access to unique data from its 9 years of operation combined with eBay assets such as eBay feedback and complaint rates, calling it "deep historical information."
In October, PayPal will test a Web Service that utilizes advanced risk predictors, giving merchants more information and control over whether to accept payments, while maintaining buyer privacy. The Web Service will fully rollout in 2008.
Also keynoting at the afternoon session was eBay's Eric Billingsley, Senior Director of Search and Research Labs. Billingsley's talk may have left some scratching their heads at the idea of component-based design and the possibility of eBay hosting applications from outside developers. Attendees wanting to add context to his presentation should read Martin LaMonica's write-up of his interview with Billingsley on Monday, "eBay thinks outside with eBox" (http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6190508.html).
And perhaps to tantalize developers about the possibilities of "eBay Anywhere," Chumby.com founder Steve Adler showed off his tiny wifi device that displays RSS feeds, music, video and more and looked more like a toy that kids could toss to each other than a mini-computer. Adler has been working closely with eBay to bring eBay to the Chumby (http://www.chumby.com), and he urged developers to visit his company's site to learn how to develop applications for the device, which will launch in July.
eBay founder Piere Omidyar is scheduled to speak on Wednesday, the final day of the eBay Developers Conference. eBay Live kicks off on Thursday.
eBay wrapped up day two of its Developers Conference in Boston with a keynote session featuring a talk by several speakers, including PayPal CTO Scott Thompson. Thompson said fraud has slowed the growth of ecommerce, and he said PayPal wants to help merchants make more informed decisions about transaction payments. 
