eBay ends dispute with Craigslist, sells back stake

San Jose, Calif. – eBay Inc. has sold its 28.4% stake in Craigslist back to the online classified ad service inn a confidential settlement agreement. eBay initially purchased the stake from Craiglist in 2004, but the two parties have been involved in litigation for years.



Legal disputes arose after Craiglist accused eBay of using proprietary Craigslist information to launch its own online classified ad service in 2007. Then in 2010, a court determined that Craigslist improperly too actions to reduce eBay’s holdings in Craigslist to 24.9% from 28.4%.



The settlement ends all litigation between the two companies as well as returns the ownership stake to Craigslist for an undisclosed sum. Presumably eBay is looking to eliminate as many potential liabilities as possible before its upcoming split into a separate company from PayPal.