Recently I was asked by a local journalist to comment on a story she was writing about online auction scams. It seems to me that every time there is a news story about online auctions, the focus is always on its negative aspects: scams, absurd items, etc.

So much of the media attention is directed to these negative areas, I feel that the real story is being overlooked - online auctions are giving people new business opportunities, adding to the SOHO revolution and affecting the market in many subtle yet discernible ways.

Here are just a few quantifiable ways that online auctions may be making an impact.

• A rise in Priority Mail Shipping. According to Monica Suraci-Miller of Expedited/Package Services, there has been an 8% increase in Priority Mail Shipping since 1995. "We attribute part of that to people who are sending out packages to online auction buyers."
• Retailers closing their brick and mortar shops to pursue online auctions full-time. Donna Haines owned an antique store and dabbled in eBay. "Over time, the Internet sales exceeded the sales of the shop, and we made the decision to close the shop and focus on Internet sales," said Haines, who along with her husband Dick, now sells as oldbooksandpaper.com on eBay.
• Packing material, a product that could be found in dumpsters, has become a hot commodity. According to Staples P.R. person, Kristina Erridge, shipping material is a growing category in itself. Staples has instituted a "Pack 'n Ship" program to keep up with the growing demand for shipping. An Office Depot representative also remarked that there has been a "substantial increase" in the sales of packing material over the past few years.
• A rise in the sales of digital cameras and scanners, both very important tools for the online auction seller. According to Michele Lampmann of Infotrends Research Group Inc., a firm that tracks PC imaging and image capture technologies, digital camera sales have enjoyed a better than 150% rise in sales since 1997. In 1997, just over 800,000 digital camera were sold nationwide, and by November, 1999, nearly 2 million units had been purchased. Interestingly, 15% of registered camera users responded in 1999 that they used their cameras to sell items over the Internet. Infotrends forecasts that by 2003, over 7 million digital cameras will have been sold.
• Changes in tax laws. Legislators are looking for ways to bring in tax revenue from users who trade on online auction sites. North Carolina and New Hampshire are just two states that are proposing legislation that would require certain users to obtain licenses to sell online.

What do you think? We'd love to hear from you! If you have examples of how online auctions are influencing the market, let us know. Email me at dsteiner@auctionbytes.com, or leave a message in the Main Message board.