Garrett Price, PayPal’s VP of Business Development, who was at the time eBay’s Senior Director of Corporate Development, testifies in the eBay v. Craigslist trial webcast live by CVN.

With respect to the possibility of expanding Craigslist internationally, Price said he “highly doubted [Craigslist's] ability to be successful outside the U.S. and Canada…we did not believe the Craigslist platform was the best way to go.”

 Daily Video Highlights from the eBay-Craigslist Trial are also being offered.

Brian Levey, eBay’s in-house attorney for corporate securities and governance, started off Day 3 of the eBay v. Craigslist trial with a long series of “I don’t recall’s” in response to cross-examination by Perkins Coie attorney Michael Clyde.

Clyde: “That confirms, doesn’t it, that the reason you asked Mr. Silverman to leave the board was because you wanted to be beyond reproach from a corporate governance standpoint?”

Levey: “Yes.” 

Clyde: “But you weren’t interested in being beyond reproach from a corporate governance standpoint when eBay was PLANNING to launch a competitive venture against Craigslist?”

Levey: “No.” 

CVN is webcasting both live trial coverage and highlights clips. 

The eBay v. Craigslist trial continued on day two with testimony from Skype CEO Josh Silverman.  Silverman began his testimony late Monday, and continued during both the Tuesday morning and afternoon sessions.

Silverman was responsible for the launch of eBay’s international classified ad business, including kijiji, which was subsequently launched in the United States. 

Skype previously was a wholly owned subsidiary of eBay, until eBay sold 70% of Skype for approximately $2B in November, 2009.

CVN is carrying the eBay v. Craigslist trial live and also offering video highlights clips. 

There will be much talk in the coming days of how eBay sampled Craigslist’s “secret sauce” (although Meg Whitman purported to reveal the specific recipe in yesterday’s testimony), but this trial appears to be filled with all kinds of interesting subtexts.  

The CVN evidence feed revealed one of them yesterday when this email (see below) was shown during eBay founder Pierre Omidyar’s testimony:

Omidyar remained collected on the stand yesterday, despite occasionally withering cross-examination.  But Omidyar was clear about his hesitation to originally join and to subsequently remain on the Craigslist board.  

By email Omidyar agreed nonetheless to serve, and he ended that email with this sentence: “And let’s just say that if I have to be deposed or anything, I’ll be really, really annoyed. “

After yesterday’s cross-examination, Omidyar may well have been.

According to Reuters, the eBay v. Craigslist trial,

“promises to reveal the inner workings of two benchmark Web companies and bring to the witness stand two Internet pioneers: former eBay Chief Executive Meg Whitman and Craigslist founder Craig Newmark.”

Bloomberg reports that Whitman will be the first to testify on Monday, December 7, followed immediately by eBay co-founder Pierre Omidyar. 

And not just intrigue, but money.  Reuters says,

 “At issue is eBay’s minority ownership in San Francisco’s Craigslist, a company that eBay says could potentially be worth several billion dollars.”

The legal issues, too, are important.  According to the Delaware Corporate and Commercial Litigation Blog, 

“The case involves important issues of corporate law and corporate litigation arising, among other things, from board membership on, and investments by, one competitor in another competitor…” 

And, of course, there’s politics. Whitman, who is vying for the Republican nomination to succeed Arnold Schwarzenegger as California’s governor, has never held elected office, and is relying on her business experience to establish her leadership credentials, so the stakes could not be higher.  Also seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination in California are Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner and former congressional representative Tom Campbell.

So whether it be money, politics, intrigue, or just a chance to see the stars, tune in to watch CVN’s webcast live starting Monday morning, or buy any highlights clips for $6 and watch the last day / closing argument highlight clips for no additional charge.

The San Francisco Chronicle is reporting that California gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman will be a “star witness” in the upcoming eBay v. Craigslist trial to be webcast by CVN from Delaware.  Whitman was president and CEO of eBay at the time of the events in question.

 Whitman endorsed Mitt Romney for President, and then John McCain.  On September 22, 2009, she announced her candidacy for California’s governorship.  Whitman’s appearance on the stand is sure to raise the profile of this already prominent megatrial between cross-town rivals eBay of Silicon Valley, and Craigslist of San Francisco.

  CVN will webcast the trial live.

The eBay v. Craigslist trial — a Silicon Valley epic battle — started innocently enough.  On August 13, 2004, the Wall Street Journal called eBay’s purchase of a minority stake in Craigslist an “unusual pairing:”

“In an unusual pairing of an Internet colossus and a classified-listings Website with a cult following, eBay Inc. said it acquired 25% of Craigslist, a deal that Craigslist’s executives say will allow the site to retain one of its most treasured assets: its soul.”

  The Wall Street Journal went on to quote eBay spokesman Hani Durzy as saying:

“The reason we did this minority investment really was for learning purposes — it gives us access to learn how the classified market online works.”

Perhaps eBay learned what it needed to know.  The following year eBay began operating its own classified ads website overseas, kijiji.com, and in 2007 eBay brought kijiji to the United States.  In July 2007, Information Week reported,

“An eBay spokesperson acknowledged that Kijiji competes with Craigslist and said the company is retaining its boardseat and equity position in Craigslist at present.”

Craigslist did not agree, and immediately sent eBay a notice of Competitive Activity, and subsequently diluted eBay’s shares, which eliminated eBay’s right to appoint a director.  Craigslist also implemented a poison pill that would prevent eBay from selling its shares to anyone other than to Craigslist.  eBay commenced this lawsuit hoping to restore its position and to void the poison pill.

More than two years later, little has changed.  According to Wired Magazine in August, 2009, 

“…craigslist is killing Kijiji, despite the fact that Kijiji has the marketing and technical support of one of the sector’s most powerful companies behind it.”

In October, Delaware’s Chancery Court knocked out two of eBay’s seven claims against Craigslist, but the remaining five are set for trial next week, including challenges to a first refusal right and Craigslist’s dilution of eBay’s shares.

 Did the Craigslist “board ofdirectors engage in a scheme to dilute eBay’s shares,” as eBay contends, or did Craigslist adopt “reasonable governance measures” to protect against “eBay’s exploitation of its position as stockholder to harm Craigslist and obtain unfair commercial advantage,” as Craigslist contends?

CVN will stream the entire trial live, ad-free, and gavel-to-gavel.  Visit CVN to subscribe, or get clips of closing argument at no additional charge with any $6 clips purchase.