EBid (www.eBid.net), the second largest online auction site in the United Kingdom, is ready to officially launch a U.S. auction site. As part of the U.S. kickoff, eBid is offering new customers a Lifetime Gold Membership ($79.99) for the same price as posting a single item on eBay, the company said.

Lifetime Gold Members do not pay listing fees, final value fees, reserve price fees, and “BuyNow” fees. In addition, they will receive free eBid Stores service, the company said in a statement.

The official eBid U.S. launch, scheduled for Tuesday, follows an eight-month pilot program that attracted more than 10,000 U.S. buyers and sellers, the company said. Site enhancements suggested by these new members, such as new product categories and pricing structures, have been implemented prior to launch.

eBid offers Escrow and Instant online payments through its secure PPPay.com service. Transactions can be made in U.S. dollars, U.K. pounds, and Euros from credit or debit cards. PPPay.com Escrow holds money on a buyer’s behalf until items are received and inspected. Alternatively, PPPay.com Instant securely and instantly transfers payments.

Posted: 11|3|05 at 9:59 am. Filed under: US News.