It what was a major disappointment for many, Craigslist has seemingly taken the first step over the edge and gone corporate. Recently, 25% of the company, the shared owned by a now vacated partner, was bought out by EBay.

eBay has acquired a 25 percent stake in Craigslist, an online listing of classified ads and forums.

The two companies said Friday that the deal will allow them to share “expertise, resources and creativity” on behalf of their online communities. Craigslist lets people post or trade information about jobs, apartments and items for sale in 45 cities.

Source: News.com, “eBay buys into Craigslist”

Craig has commented on the matter via his personal blog as well:

Although I never figured that part of craigslist might be owned by a public company, Meg Whitman and Pierre Omidyar showed that they were interested in us for all the right reasons.

Like craigslist, eBay is about helping folks get everyday stuff done, on a level playing field - they emphasize trustworthiness and reputation, and try really hard to listen to people. Basically, we’re both about building community, and humanizing and democratizing the ‘net, and there’s gotta be more of that.

Source: craigblog, “ebay and craigslist”

I think a large part of the disappointment that most people are expressing is fear of the changes that will occur as a result of EBay’s influence. Craigslist has been the darling of many because of its openness and grassroots management. It’s hard to stay true to many things when new forces, driven largely by profits and shareholders, are involved.

All in all, I don’t see it as a sell-out in any way, as some have described. Popularity breeds content, content breeds bandwidth, and both require management and resources. I trust Craig will do his best to keep the goals of his organization in line.