(PressMediaWire) San Jose, Calif -- April 22, 2008 — In order to safeguard its
four-year financial investment in craigslist, eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY; )
today filed a lawsuit in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware
challenging recent transactions implemented by craigslist's board of
directors, consisting of Craig Newmark and Jim Buckmaster.
In 2004, after negotiating the transaction with craigslist's
board, eBay acquired a minority ownership interest in craigslist of
28.4 percent.
In January 2008, however, Newmark and Buckmaster adopted
measures that, among other things, unfairly diluted eBay's economic
interest in craigslist by more than 10 percent. By taking these
unilateral actions, eBay believes that Newmark and Buckmaster breached
their fiduciary duties in violation of Delaware corporate law.
"The recent actions by the craigslist directors have
disadvantaged eBay and its investment in craigslist," said Mike
Jacobson, eBay Senior Vice President and General Counsel. "Since
negotiating our investment with craigslist's board in 2004, we have
acted openly and in good faith as a minority shareholder, so we were
surprised by these recent unilateral actions. We are asking the
Delaware court to rescind these recent actions in order to protect
eBay's stockholders and preserve our investment."
The complaint is being filed under seal because some of the
information about craigslist contained in the complaint is governed by
confidentiality restrictions.
About eBay Inc.
Founded in 1995, eBay Inc. connects
hundreds of millions of people around the world every day, empowering
them to explore new opportunities and innovate together. eBay Inc. does
this by providing the Internet platforms of choice for global commerce,
payments and communications. Since its inception, eBay Inc. has
expanded to include some of the strongest brands in the world,
including eBay, PayPal, Skype, StubHub, Shopping.com, and others. eBay
Inc. is headquartered in San Jose, California.
Media Contact
Kim Rubey, eBay Inc.
408.376.745
SOURCE: eBay, Inc
