PayPal and eBay split into separate companies

PayPal will continue to be used as eBay’s main payment provider

Online retailer eBay and payment company PayPal are splitting their operations into two individual companies, having traded together since eBay bought PayPal in 2002.

The split was first announced in September 2014 and will came into effect on Friday.

PayPal has long been eBay’s fastest growing subsidiary, but it was seen as necessary for it to start trading independently in order to better compete with up-and-coming rivals such as Apple and Android Pay.

Some members of eBay’s board had initially been very reluctant to let go of PayPal, and the decision to separate came as a surprise to many in the industry.

PayPal will continue to be used as eBay’s main payment provider, and nothing is expected to change for customers.

PayPal will start trading independently on the stock market from today.

When that happens, eBay’s market value is expected to drop from more than $75bn to around $30bn.

It means that PayPal will immediately be worth more than its parent company.

On the eve of the split, eBay announced strong profits for the second quarter of this year, beating forecasts to register net revenues of $4.4bn.

This includes $2.3bn of revenue from PayPal – a 16% increase on the previous quarter.

The company also revealed it had sold its Enterprise arm, which develops online shopping sites for retailers including PetSmart and Ikea.

eBay received $925m  for the sale – less than half the $2.4bn it paid to acquire Enterprise four years ago.

It is the latest in a series of downgrades for the online retailer after it sold its stake in Craigslist for an undisclosed sum in June and made 7% of its workforce redundant at the beginning of 2015 – a total of 2,400 jobs.

Many analysts expect eBay to struggle without the support of PayPal’s success at a time when it is facing increasing competition from other online retailers including Amazon and Etsy, as well as the rising popularity of independent online boutiques.

The two companies employ more than 1,000 people in Dundalk.

13-year-old given 18 month suspended sentence

A 13-year-old boy was given suspended sentences totaling 18 months at Dundalk Circuit Court yesterday after being found guilty of acting as a look-out for a group involved in stealing over €25,000 worth of equipment from O Fiaich College.

LMFM radio reported this morning that the court were told that the accused had been abusing drugs since aged 11 and that he became involved in crime to either get money to buy cannabis or to pay off drug debts.

The court heard that the teenager, who cannot be named for legal reasons, acted as a look-out for a group of older youths who broke into the Hoey’s Lane school on two occasions in February.

The group stole more than €25,000 worth of Apple computers and equipment from the school’s multi-media room.

As well as admitting a charge of trespassing on both dates, the 13-year-old also pleaded guilty to stealing a bottle of whiskey from Lidl on the Long Avenue last August and trespassing at a house in College Manor on Hoey’s Lane last September.

After being assured that the boy’s mother was making every effort to divert the child away from the path he has been on, Judge Michael O’Shea sentenced him to a total of 18 months detention, which was suspended on him entering a good behaviour bond which ensures he must engage with various support groups and go to counselling.

Pulse FM goes live in Dundalk

A new radio station went live in Dundalk this afternoon.

Pulse FM started to broadcast at 2pm.

The station is only available online at present, via the popular TuneIn app for Apple or Android devices or via music site Mixlr.

Long-term the plan is for the station to have a physical location and FM frequency.

Ten computers stolen from O Fiaich College in recent weeks

O Fiaich College

Ten computers have been stolen from O Fiaich College in Dundalk since the start of the month.

The theft of the computers – Apple iMacs – are believed to have happened during three separate break-ins to the Hoey’s Lane school since February 2^nd or 3^rd.

Five iMac computers were stolen during the first break-in with a further four taken the next time, followed by one in the most recent raid.

Anyone with information on any of the break-ins or of anyone selling used iMac computers is asked to contact Dundalk Gardaí.