eBay is an online auction and shopping website founded in 1995 by Pierre Omidyar where buyers and sellers can access a global marketplace. It started with the sale of a broken laser pointer for $14.83 and has since grown tremendously, going public in 1998 and acquiring companies like PayPal, StubHub, and Skype. eBay connects individuals who may not otherwise be connected through a model based on user-to-user transactions, with eBay charging fees on listings and final sale prices to encourage high volume activity on the platform.