AKIPRESS.COM - Two of the biggest names in auction sales, Sotheby’s and eBay, said they are joining forces to make it easier to buy antiques, collectibles and works of fine art online, South China Morning Post said.

The two companies plan to stream selected auctions with live bidding in real time late this year or early next year from Sotheby’s New York headquarters.

The deal will connect the 270-year-old Sotheby’s, with its extensive inventory of fine art, antiques, books, jewels, watches and furniture, with eBay’s 145 million active buyers around the world.

Traditional evening auctions, where contemporary or Impressionist works of art can be sold for $50 million and more, will not be included on eBay.

Auctions from other locations – such as London, Hong Kong, Paris or Geneva – could follow in the future.

Auction houses, including Sotheby’s and rival Christie’s, have conducted online sales for years. But the deal gives Sotheby’s the advantage of eBay’s digital technology and online marketing skills and potentially more bidders and higher prices and sales.

Auctions of jewelery, watches, prints, wine, photographs and some fine art are expected to be streamed online with prices in the range of $5,000 to $100,000.

For eBay, the deal with Sotheby’s is a chance to expand into the live auction market.

The venture comes as the prices of individual works of art at auction have escalated to record highs. Francis Bacon’s triptych painting Three Studies of Lucian Freud sold for $142.4 million in November in New York, the highest price ever for an item sold at auction.

Total sales in the global art and antiques market rose 8 percent to $65.9 billion last year, the highest level since 2007, with Asian buyers playing an increasingly important role, according to the European Fine Art Foundation’s annual report.