Talking of Live 8, eBay has taken the rare step of removing listings from its auction website after both political and charity leaders hit out when it was revealed some people were using the sales platform to auction off tickets to the benefit event.
When tickets for the Live 8 concerts, won via last week's text lottery, first appeared for sale on the eBay site, Live 8 coordinator Bob Geldof told reporters that "the weakest people on our planet" were being exploited and that he was "sickened by that". He called on music fans to make ridiculously high false bids for the tickets to ruin the chances of those selling them to actually make a sale.
The UK's Minister For Music James Purnell backed Geldof on the issue, telling reporters he "wholeheartedly" shared Geldof's annoyance. Live 8 promoter Harvey Goldsmith made a more general attack on the way eBay allowed ticket touts to sell on tickets (it was a problem experienced by UK music festival Glastonbury earlier this year). He told reporters: "They have got to get their act together and decide what they are - they cannot be black-marketeers of tickets".
eBay initially resisted calls to block the sale of Live 8 tickets, instead offering to pass on their modest commission from any sale to the Live 8 charities. But then yesterday evening the company changed its policy, telling reporters: "Our customers said they were concerned about the profiteering rap being connected with the name of the site they're so passionate about. It is extremely difficult for us to do, even if we wanted to, but in emergency circumstances, which is how our community is viewing this, we will do our darndest to."