Hoping to renew growth, boost inventory and ultimately revenue eBay is courting fixed priced sellers a model Amazon has been operating successfully.

Tomorrow eBay will announce plans to slash the upfront fees it charges to list sale items by as much as 75%, while increasing its final sales commission. eBay makes about has traditionally made as much as 60% of its shopping revenue from upfront fees—levied regardless of whether an item sells. The structure encouraged more sellers to list items for auctions, which at least guarantee a sale, than for fixed prices.

eBay is rapidly moving away from its auction model which has been becoming unpopular with buyers. Most buyers prefer to purchase items as opposed to bid and wait for it, hence eBay is introducing a “buy-it-now” price. “We think that this is the biggest, most fundamental change we have made,” says Lorrie Norrington, president of eBay’s global marketplaces business.

Under the new fee structure, eBay will charge just 35¢ to list an item for sale on its site, but will raise the fees it charges when an item sells. It will also charge sellers who have multiples of the same item just once to list all of their identical inventory. The result is that eBay will earn 80% of its revenue from sales commissions and just 20% from fees to list items—and, eBay hopes, inventory for sale will surge. “We believe by making the fees more success-based, buyers will have more choice, better values, and that sellers will sell more,” says Norrington. More>>