FairMarket Gains on eBay Alliance

FairMarket (Nasdaq: FAIM) rose to US$2.41, up 53 cents, after the company, which provides so-called "dynamic pricing" services to retailers, said its clients will be able to sell their wares directly over the eBay marketplace.

FairMarket said the deal will let merchants, manufacturers and distributors "efficiently list, manage and transact sales through eBay."

Home-shopping network ValueVision will be one of the first FairMarket clients to take advantage of the agreement.

"In addition to providing distribution of products and services to the existing FairMarket network, we will now provide our clients with the infrastructure and services needed to take advantage of eBay's vibrant marketplace of over 22 million registered users and 2.6 million users each day," said FairMarket president and chief executive officer Eileen Rudden.

The new service will be available early in the second quarter, FairMarket said.

FairMarket, based in Woburn, Massachusetts, reported a loss before one-time charges of $8.3 million, or 29 cents per share, for the fourth quarter ended December 31st, compared with a loss of $8.5 million, or 30 cents, in the same period a year earlier. Revenue totaled $3.3 million, down from $3.6 million.

The company said it is focusing on large retailers, distributors, manufacturers and service providers, helping them sell discount and clearance goods and conduct interactive marketing events on the Web.

New FairMarket clients include Style.com, Virgin.Net and the San Francisco Chronicle. The company also serves JCPenney, Dell Computer, MSN and Lycos, among others.

FairMarket is also expanding its presence overseas, with the recent opening of an office in Frankfurt, Germany.