Ebay: An Astrological View

Natal Chart Interpretation:

The natal chart used for Ebay is the date, place and time of Ebay Incorporation which was 21 September, 1998, 9.30 am, New York, USA.
As Ebay was listed on the New York stock exchange on that day and as the stock exchange commences daily trading at 9.30 am, this is the birth time with the birth place being New York, USA.

This natal chart shows the success of Ebay as a global online market place very clearly.
The chart ruler, Pluto in Sagittarius makes a very positive aspect to the Midheaven (success, recognition) from the 2nd house of earning power clearly indicating the success of the company.

It is interesting to note other astrological aspects, which define how the company works, how it has evolved over the years, the type of customers it attracts and the way it implements policies and procedures.

With the Sun in Virgo, along with Mercury and Venus, all forming tight aspects with each other, in the 11th house of hopes and wishes and emphasis on the group or community, it is little wonder that the company was founded with a strong sense of community values, and dedication to its principles along with an ethos of hard work.

The 11th house is also the natural house of Uranus, the planet ruling technology, so hence we have a company which operates in cyberspace or on the internet. The planet Jupiter, is in the sign of Pisces, opposing the cluster in Virgo, indicating that hard work, dedication and the use of creativity, will result in achieving rewards for the Ebay community. It is also underpins the slogan “Lets make shopping fun.”

Business in this company is conducted within the cyberspace/ internet community, or family, which is shown very aptly with Uranus (ruler of IT technology) in Aquarius, on the cusp of the IC or 4th house of roots/family.

Uranus makes a positive aspect to the Moon in Libra in the 12th house, indicating dealing and relating with others behind the scenes, in seclusion (12th house) , after all you can’t relate directly with people when in cyberspace.

The 12th house also represents “self undoing”, the garbage dump or the bargain basement, addiction and yes - deceit, yet it can give rise to great intuition and insight.

The sign of Libra is ruled by Venus, the planet of love and money, and placed in this house makes it easy to turn our trash into treasure online, as one attracts a global online community which loves looking for bargains.

This Uranus/Moon aspect and the 12th house influence therefore explain why Ebay staff work behind the scenes, and users of Ebay are in seclusion at home, buying or selling on the internet all without any real face to face contact with each other or with customers. Many use gut instinct or intuition in deciding on becoming Ebay members and also in deciding on what to sell or buy, when to list, etc.

The “self undoing” interpretation given to the 12th house is always hard to explain and also hard to comprehend. Its all about doing something which can backfire on us, or we become unstuck through our own actions- but we didn’t intend to – it just happens. With this interpretation in mind, suddenly, our great online shopping experience can become a nightmare!

To illustrate this point, from the buyer's viewpoint, the 12th house placement can cause them to get carried away with online shopping to the extent of not being able to pay, next they have a non-payer bidder strike, or a seller has left negative feedback, making their shopping experience unpleasant.
Sellers may list a stock photo to save time, forget to send items, list items they no longer hold, all resulting in a customer relationship nightmare!

Ebay staff set up and implement policies which are handled by automated email – something which is totally in keeping with the cyberspace environment and the huge customer base, yet it too can fall short, as the caring human element is missing – need I say more!

Unfortunately, this 12th house Moon/Uranus aspect can also attract unscrupulous transactions and yes let's face it Ebay becomes addictive!

Given this aspect, does it indicate difficulty for Ebay to break away from its “Trash and Treasure” marketplace image? Can it be turned into a company selling “exclusive” items?
And further what are the implications for caring, safe, customer service in this cyberspace marketplace?

At best, with this 12th house placement, customer relationships will always be difficult for Ebay and breaking free from the “trash & treasure” image will also be difficult. Strict measures to curtail fraud and deception will always need to be in place.

The natal chart also shows Satu
in Taurus in the 7th house. The word “trustworthy” comes to mind with Satu
in this sign, and also a great desire to succeed in big business.
Hence, Ebays push to curtail fraud and gain a reputation of being “trustworthy”, albeit a difficult path, as Saturn squares the Midheaven and squares Uranus in the 4th which triggers the Moon in the 12th house.!

Satu
in this placement, does however, give the customer a sense of stability and reliability, a place where it can set up businesses over time.

Further, Satu
in the house of “partnerships/public/relationships” indicates being a stickler for rules and regulations and quite ste
with those who break the rules or don’t play according to the rules! Customers by and large play by the rules due to the strict discipline placed upon them. However, once the rules are broken, the consequences are quite stern, and in some cases, the relationship is abruptly terminated! (Saturn square Uranus, on the IC – the end of the matter.)

Saturn also makes an abrasive aspect to Venus (love of community or group values), so any push by Ebay to follow its yearning for taking over big business may have detrimental effects on group or community values.

In summary, the natal chart shows us that Ebay is a successful online global company which has a strong sense of community and group values, which offers users a stable and reliable environment to buy and sell, and is governed by strict rules. It has succeeded in making bids for other large companies and has attempted to combine its big business outlook with the needs of its community members. It has been troubled by image problems relating to fraud/deceit, customer dissatisfaction with its strict policies and being an online market place only for the bottom end of the market - all very much in keeping with its natal chart interpretation.

Predictions for Ebay based on current and future planetary aspects in 2008-2009

So what is happening now with planetary aspects to the chart by transiting, eclipsed, and progressed planets?

The solar arc Sun is now conjuncting the Moon in the 12th house. This has trigged a crackdown on deceit/fraud and we witness changes to the feedback system, using the Ebay owned Paypal company as the most trusted method of payment to enhance safety and security.

Ebays community values are being activated and used to make the buyer/seller experience more pleasant. But will this be successful?

The chart shows solar arc Neptune conjuncting Uranus in the 4th house and making an awkward aspect to natal Mercury.
The progressed Moon will also conjunct the Uranus/Neptune combo and trines the Sun/Moon. This is significant planetary action!
Ebays core(4th house IC) is in disarray. The new measures have not been thought out clearly (Mercury/Neptune), its fairness to all and its true intentions are being questioned (Mercury, Neptune/ Moon) and revolt and upheaval (Uranus) is afoot!

The solar eclipse on 1 August opposes the exact degree of natal Uranus/ the Part of Fortune (money/profits) and Solar Arc Neptune. The poorly planned changes will not go ahead as first expected and great chaos will result, and needless to say profits will drop.

The chart also suggests that there is great internal upheaval within the Ebay organization, so heads will roll and founding members will go, especially females. There could also be legal action which causes concern.

Transiting Satu
in Virgo, will hover over the natal Venus, Mercury and Sun all year and well into next year. Ebays hopes and wishes (larger profits) and group values/ policies will certainly come under scrutiny, but some slow progress and improvements in this area could be made.

At the beginning of the article I mentioned that the most prominent feature in the chart to indicate success for Ebay was the Pluto/Midheaven aspect.

On incorporation, Pluto was in the sign of Sagittarius, and the natural ruler of Sagittarius is Jupiter. Astrologers claim that a Jupiter/Pluto combination is the “make a million, loose a million” aspect.
In other words, it is a phrase which implies, don’t get carried away with money and abundance – don’t overdo it, take too much risk or get over-inflated or suffer the consequences.

Sagittarius is the sign of the adventurer, risk taker, being at home in the world at large, grand ideas.Given this interpretation, it is little wonder that Ebay made it so successfully in the global marketplace during the era of powerful Pluto’s transit of this sign.
The catch is that the ruler of the chart Pluto is now changing signs. As I write this article, Pluto is moving back into Sagittarius for the last time in our living memory.
From late November it will have left Sagittarius for good, so is it now time to curtail actions based on this Jupiter/Pluto influence – yes - or else the "loose a million" might just kick in.

From November onwards, with Pluto in Capricorn, Ebays ruler - Pluto - must behave in a more Capricornian manner which means that those ruling Ebay must become more responsible!

The chart ruler Pluto will not only change signs but also houses – from the second to the 3rd house of communication early next year, and will aspect its Satu
in the 7th house of relationships/public/partnerships very positively.

This will be a great opportunity for the company to clear up the upheavals occurring during the middle of this year.
A more balanced approach to customer relationships, coupled with new communication technology, taking a more responsible attitude to loyal customers, giving countries belonging to the Ebay community more autonomy to suit the needs of the local environment and accepting its niche in the online bargain market place are a few suggestions moving forward from an astrological viewpoint.

It will be tough times ahead for many, over the years to come and in those times who will not enjoy shopping for bargains. Perhaps we are even approaching times where bargain shopping will not just be for "fun" but for many a sheer necessity of life!

As above, so below. n