Functional PCA for Exploring Bidding Activity Times for Online Auctions

In the past decade the use of the internet has become a major part of most people’s daily lives. The large increase in internet activity has also sparked the growth of new industry, in particular, e-commerce. There are thousands of well-known e-commerce companies. Ebay is one of the most popular and well-known. Ebay is the world’s largest online auction house and plays a large part in the e-commerce industry as a whole. Founded in September of 1995, eBay is known as “The World's Online Marketplace® “ for the sale of goods and services by a diverse community of individuals and small businesses. Today, the eBay community includes more than a hundred million registered members from around the world. People spend more time on eBay than any other online website, making it the most popular shopping destination on the internet. Visitors buy and sell items in numerous categories. The categories range from collectibles like trading cards, antiques, dolls, and coins to practical items like used cars, clothing, books, CDs, and electronics. Buyers have the option to purchase items in an auction-style format or at a fixed price with the Buy It Now option.