eBay Launches the Livestream Shopping Era in Germany
eBay launched its livestream shopping feature in Germany on November 29, 2025 at Comic Con Stuttgart. As part of the event, the company hosted live broadcasts by well known sellers at its dedicated booth in Hall 10 for two days.
eBay has brought its livestream shopping experience from the United States and the United Kingdom to Germany. The company launched its livestream feature in an effort to keep pace with strong competitors such as TikTok Shop, Whatnot and Fanatics, which are rapidly expanding in the market. However, experts point out that this move is a delayed step for the platform.
eBay launched its livestream shopping feature in Germany on November 29, 2025 at Comic Con Stuttgart. As part of the event, the company hosted live broadcasts by well known sellers at its dedicated booth in Hall 10 for two days. The first livestream was held by Jannik Alfter, owner of Crocus Cards, known for Pokémon products and trading cards. eBay Live will initially focus on collectibles and fashion categories and plans to expand its product range in 2026.
Although eBay Live has been active in the United States for more than three years, its entry into the German market is considered a significantly delayed step. Competitors have already begun dividing the market.
eBay’s Claim of Being One of the First Sparks Debate
eBay’s statement that it is “one of the first platforms to introduce the livestream shopping format in Germany” has been criticized by industry experts. Platforms such as Whatnot, Fanatics Live and Voggt had entered the German market as early as 2024. TikTok Shop also launched in Germany in March 2025 and quickly built a massive user base.
According to data from analytics firm EchoTik, TikTok Shop generated approximately 19 billion dollars in global sales in the third quarter of 2025. During the same period, eBay’s total global sales volume reached 20.1 billion dollars. This shows that TikTok is getting very close to challenging eBay in the collectibles category, where eBay has historically been dominant. The figures clearly explain why eBay is now investing aggressively in livestream commerce.
Technical Issues and Strategic Missteps Have Set eBay Back
eBay’s livestream strategy has been criticized not only for being late but also for several mistakes made throughout the process. Although eBay Live was already active in the United Kingdom in 2024, company executives miscommunicated the launch date, raising concerns about internal communication issues.
In addition, for a long period, the company encouraged small sellers not to join eBay Live but instead to build their livestream presence on rival platforms such as TikTok, Whatnot and Instagram. This led many sellers to grow their communities and customer bases outside of eBay.
On top of this, eBay Live experienced serious technical problems in the past. For example, the Elton John charity event ended in a major failure due to poor image quality, lag and stream interruptions. Although eBay has stated that it has improved the platform since then, criticism remains that the user experience still lags behind competitors.
A Critical Turning Point for eBay
The livestream shopping move in Germany may represent a comeback opportunity for eBay. However, with giants like TikTok, Whatnot and Fanatics expanding rapidly, eBay faces significant challenges. The company must address two key questions: Can it quickly strengthen its technical infrastructure and expand category access? Can it win back sellers who have grown on rival platforms? Investors and sellers are closely watching how quickly eBay will respond to these challenges.