As reported by Mashables, Web 1.0 mainstay eBay has unveiled a new company logo, ditching the floating letters for a more traditional, simple font, but with the same color scheme.
In a note on its site, eBay president Devin Wenig says the new logo is part of its effort to reinvent the 17-year-old brand and create a new eBay. Wenig says the site today offers a “cleaner” and “more consistent” experience than before and that the crisp letters in the logo reflect that. Retaining the color palette was important, however, since they represent eBay’s “connected and diverse” community of buyers and sellers, he wrote.
“The eBay logo is known the world over, so changing it was not a decision made lightly,” the note reads. “The time felt right. We’re incredibly proud of how eBay started and quickly grew into the world’s largest online marketplace. Auction-style listings, used goods, vintage items and quirky, one-of-a-kind finds are still a big part of what makes buying and selling on eBay special. We hope that’s always true. But we’ve evolved a lot in the past few years, and eBay is much more than auction-style listings today.”
eBay chose the font Univers Extended for the logo, says Dianna McDougall, a New York-based designer. Although the font is relatively open, the letters are squeezed tightly together. The choice of a simple font is reminiscent of Microsoft’s new logo, which the company revealed in August.
Wenig tipped some changes coming to the site, saying the site would become more personalized, with more local and global features. Wenig also appears to have fully embraced eBay’s transition from an auction site to a storefront, pointing out that most items are sold on eBay through the “Buy It Now!” option as opposed to auctions.
He also reiterated some information from eBay’s latest earnings report — that the company’s mobile apps had been downloaded 100 million times, and it expects $10 billion in volume transacted over mobile in 2012.
The new logo will officially roll out in October (the site’s front page still displays the old logo). Visitors to the site should expect to see it then, and eBay says it will be launching an advertising and marketing campaign at the same time.
