I’ve made my case for eBay multiple times in the past. It’s no secret that I think they’re a really smart company. It’s also no secret that I don’t think they always get the credit and/or recognition that they deserve. A lot of folks don’t keep close tabs on what they’re up to in the same way that they might track… oh… say Google.

The New York Times is reporting on some changes being made over at eBay designed to boost their auction business:

At eBay, subtle change is about to become a thing of the past. Under pressure from analysts and investors to jump-start growth in its core auctions business, eBay is making a series of upgrades intended to make the site more friendly to buyers. In so doing, it may have to endure a torrent of criticism from more than 700,000 sellers who rely on eBay for their livelihoods and who have firm ideas of their own about how best to serve buyers.

“We have to make sure our old users stay with us, but we’re going to be more bold around product changes than we’ve been in the past,” Ms. Whitman said in an interview last week in Boston at eBay Live, an annual conference for the site’s sellers. “I think people expect more from eBay.”

Indeed. I’ve always said that eBay was in a perfect position to slowly and steadily emerge as an even bigger powerhouse than they already are. In many ways… they’re the “dark horse” of the Internet. A little change here… an acquisition there. The next thing you know…

Maybe they should be the ones looking to buy Yahoo.

What do you think? Would a Yahoo!/eBay merger make sense? Would it benefit users?

- Matt