eBay to sell Rent.com unit

eBay agreed to sell its Rent.com unit to Primedia as the company shifts away from classified and listings businesses to focus on other e-commerce and payments efforts, Reuters reports.

The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

eBay agreed to buy Rent.com for more than $400 million in late 2004. At the time, the company said the deal, which was mostly paid for with stock, would help eBay enter a new segment of the online real estate market.

More recently, eBay has been focused on improving its main online marketplace and expanding its PayPal payments business.

According to ZDNet, Primedia president and CEO Charles Stubbs, who will also take over as head of Rent.com when the deal is done, explained part of the motivation for the purchase in a statement: “The combination of our two companies will allow us to deliver a broader range of innovative products and services to our clients and more quickly expand our markets and market segments.”

Primedia execs also touted an opportunity to advertising clients about a more comprehensive suite of products with cost-effective, high-quality leads and leases.

Acquired itself by affiliates of TPG Capital last July, Primedia facilitates consumer home search leads through its Web sites and mobile applications, which already include ApartmentGuide.com, Rentals.com, RentalHouses.com and NewHomeGuide.com.