warehouses.

By comparison, eBay generated only $749 million in revenue from sales fees and
advertising on the $9.3 billion in goods sold through 170 million transactions using its system less than
4 per cent of Wal-Marts sales. However, eBay has no stores or warehouses or inventory and
accomplished its results with fewer than 3,000 employees. Further, unlike most of the dotcoms that
sprouted in the late 1990s, eBay is profitable, having produced a net profit of $138 million in 2001. eBay,
however, is no flash-in-the-pan. Analysts predict that its revenues will double to about $1.5 billion by
the end of 2003 and profits will more than double to about $318 million. Investors seemed to believe
the predictions, as eBays stock was trading at an astounding 113 times earnings at the end of 2001,
despite the stock