According to Cnet Asia's "Little Red Blog" and a site called RedLineChina.com, eBay has just launched its Chinese site, eBay.cn, which "will mainly provide a platform for small to medium size business engaged in foreign trades."

This appears to be a B2B site different from the one it is set to launch in a joint venture with Tom Online. eBay told the International Herald Tribune newspaper this week that the JV will launch in China later this summer, "with tight restrictions on sellers to clamp down on sales of counterfeit goods."

According to the paper, TOM eBay will use an escrow service. Chinese auction site Alibaba, who won market share away from eBay Eachnet, uses an escrow system as part of its Alipay payment service.

Links:

http://asia.cnet.com/reviews/blog/littleredblog/0,39056119,62023656,00.htm

http://www.redlinechina.com/main/?q=node/222

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/06/21/technology/ebay.php