| Web traffic to eBay and Yahoo continues to grow
Web traffic to Yahoo has increased by 3 percent since last year and eBay has seen a 12 percent rise in the same time frame, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. Yahoo parent company increased three percent year over year, from a three-month average monthly unique audience of 104.7 million unique visitors in Q1 2006 to 107.5 million unique visitors in Q1 2007. In online advertising, estimated revenue from image-based impressions on Yahoo grew 54 percent from Q1 2006 to Q1 2007. Sponsored links on the Yahoo property grew 16 percent in the same time period. Web traffic to the eBay parent company increased 12 percent year over year, from a three-month average monthly unique audience of 60.9 million in Q1 2006 to 68.2 million in Q1 2007. EBay brands eBay, PayPal, Shopping.com Network, and Skype all ranked number one in subject categories in March 2007, including classifieds/Auctions, Financial Tools, Shopping Directories and Guides and Long Distance/Local Carriers.
Wright's Barnyard Auction
It was a bitter-sweet party atmosphere in Lansing, Illinois, this week as Norton Auctioneers of Michigan auctioned off the rides, games and equipment from Wright's Barnyard. The amusement and fun park had been operated by the same family since it began in 1956.A favorite playtime destination for suburban Chicago families and children for over half a century, Wright's was also the host to countless area teens on their first date as well as numerous weddings.Attractions at Wright's included a kiddie carousel, a frog hopper, two miniature golf courses, a go-cart track, batting cages, an arcade, a restaurant and the home of Burt and Millie Wright on the five-acre site. The late Burt Wright started the park in the mid-1950s when he spent $300 to build a miniature golf course in the back yard of his home on Bernice Road. In the case of the ever popular Wright's Barnyard, (more recently known as Wright's Hollywood Park), it was not dwindling crowds or revenue that led to the closure, but the loss of land to the adjacent Interstate highways.According to Luke Brenner of Norton Auctioneers, the auction was a big success. "There was a great crowd and people kept coming in throughout the auction," said Brenner. "Maybe the biggest surprise was the go-carts," he added, "we were offering them individually but someone stepped up and bought the whole lot." The multi-player Pac-Man, obviously a local favorite, sold very well as did most all of the park's items. Brenner reported that the park's owner, Chris Paglia was very pleased with the auction. Paglia, grandson of the park's founder, even treated everyone in attendance to a picnic lunch.
Idol Bids Farewell To Sanjaya
"American Idol" will no longer be graced by the presence of Sanjaya Malakar. The under-talented but unflappable singer who captivated millions of fans was finally voted off the show Wednesday night. When the result was announced, Malakar wiped the tears from his eyes and got a bear hug from LaKisha Jones, the next lowest vote-getter.
"I'm fine," he told host Ryan Seacrest. "It was an amazing experience." "I can promise you: We won't soon forget you," Seacrest replied. Malakar then performed one last song, "Something To Talk About." Putting his own twist on the song, the 17-year-old known for his pretty looks and ever-changing hairstyles ad-libbed: "Let's give them something to talk about ... other than hair." The fact that Sanjaya was voted off last night must have been music to Simon Cowell's ears.
Namibia: Chiefs Caught in Financial Scam
The Regional Councillor for the Otjombinde Constituency, Matti Ndjoze and chiefs Erastus Kahuure and Tumbee Tjombe from the same constituency, are caught up in a wrangle involving money belonging to the community that cannot be accounted for. The three, under the chairmanship of Ndjoze, make up a committee that was chosen to act as caretakers of community money sourced from livestock sales during auctions in the constituency from February to August 2006. .
Golfers sought for a good cause
The Alliance for Amesbury is seeking players and corporate sponsors for its annual fund-raising golf tournament, scheduled for June 11 at the Links at Outlook Golf Course, in South Berwick, Maine. Proceeds from the event, which includes lunch, dinner, a silent auction, and a raffle, will benefit the alliance's scholarship fund and projects. This year's silent auction items include a crystal vase designed for the alliance by John Stenson, master cutter for Waterford Crystal. Stenson, a resident of Waterford City, Ireland, has created pieces for the White House and Buckingham Palace and worked on a team that created the huge crystal ball that drops in Times Square on New Year's Eve. He is the brother of Rosemary Werner, executive director of Our Neighbor's Table, a soup kitchen and food pantry in Amesbury.
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