This isn’t to pick on craigslist specifically, as this type of thing occurs all over the Net, especially where it’s free to post what other outlets charge for. Craigslist served a crushing blow to inflated classified ad prices in newspapers, and no one but newspapers complained. But besides profiting newspapers, the fees for posting an ad are natural scam deterrents.  

eBay supporters may not love the latest graph released by Hitwise.  Data collected over the course of almost three years indicates that searches for the word "auctions" are losing out in terms of quantity when compared to searches for "classifieds."

The way state attorneys general have been dealing with sex in the digital age lately shows government officials have no idea how to deal with sex in the digital age. Two cases in point: craigslist erotic services listings and teen sexting.

Almost half (49%) of all Internet users have visited an online classified site like craigslist, a percentage that’s more than doubled over the past four years. In 2005, that number was just 22 percent, according to Pew Internet.

On any given day, about a tenth of Internet users, (9%) visit online classifieds, up from four percent in 2005.

Pew’s findings are based on an April 2009 telephone survey of 2,253 adults. Pew says the margin of error sits at about plus or minus 2.4 percent.

Craigslist has decided to sue South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster. The company is seeking declaratory relief and a restraining order regarding criminal charges McMaster has threatened the company with.

WebProNews has more on the criminal charges threatened. Jim Buckmaster writing on the Craiglist blog had this to say:

Craigslist can’t win for losing, especially when it comes to grandstanding attorneys general who understand the value of a high profile crusade more than they do the law. The latest example comes out of South Carolina, where the attorney general has threatened criminal prosecution of craigslist CEO Jim Buckmaster and founder Craig Newmark for displaying prostitution ads and “graphic pornographic material.”

After a series of murders perpetrated by the now famed “craigslist killer” and significant pressure from state attorneys general and law enforcement across the country, Craigslist is shutting down its “erotic services” category.

Craig Newmark never killed anyone. In fact, all Craig wanted to do was help people. Unfortunately, Philip Markoff possibly did kill someone, and he found his lead on Craig’s website, Craigslist.org.

Craigslist is not on law enforcement’s good side at the moment; its erotic services section has come under fire from all sorts of people following the attacks in Boston.  But it looks like the lines of communication are still open, at least, as Craigslist representatives will soon meet with Illinois’s attorney general.

Twenty-six-year-old Julissa Brisman was tied up and shot several times in a Boston area hotel room by someone who solicited her massage services on Craigslist. This was the second killing in the area in a week originating with a Craigslist ad.

The other victim was identified as a Las Vegas prostitute but was thought to be an isolated incident until Brisman’s murder.

Don’t be surprised if the people behind Craigslist and other classifieds sites are secretly hoping for a repeat of the Great Depression.  New stats from Hitwise have arrived, and they show that Craigslist’s already-significant market share is increasing in such a way that it almost resembles a hockey stick.

When the going gets tough, it’s possible that the tough go to Craigslist.  A fresh report from Hitwise indicates that searchers have become extremely interested in the site, actually putting it ahead of MySpace and establishing it as the top U.S. search term for the middle of March.

An Illinois sheriff wants Craigslist to stop making it so easy to catch prostitutes. Apparently it just gives him a lot more work than he can handle.

eBay injects its brand name into its classifieds subsidiary Kijiji, which launched four years ago. Starting with two cities, the Kijiji name will change to eBay Classifieds.

AOL has entered into the classified market place with the launch of AOL Classifieds that allows users to search through local listings for every Zip Code in the U.S., as well as post their own ads for free.

AOL partnered with Oodle, which operates the largest network of classifieds services in the U.S. Users will have access to more than 40 million listings aggregated from more than 80,000 different sites.

eBay is saying "yes you can’t" to would be sellers wanting to scalp tickets on the site to President -elect Barack Obama’s inauguration on January 20.

eBay reached the decision after meeting with officials from the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies.

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), head of the committee said earlier this week she was writing both eBay and Craigslist asking the Web sites not to sell any inauguration tickets.

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is working on a bill that would make it illegal to sell tickets to President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration ceremony.

Feinstein is also writing to eBay and Craigslist asking the Web sites not to sell any scalped inauguration tickets.

Feinstein’s bill would charge those caught selling the tickets with a misdemeanor and a fine.  The Senate meets next week for a lame-duck session where the bill could be introduced.

It seems like human nature to root for a guy who pulls off the perfect heist—heck, who didn’t love Oceans 11, Bandits, or the Italian Job? Maybe the Craigslist Bandit spent too much time planning his bank robbery and not enough time watching all the creative ways Hollywood cops get DNA evidence.

A little CSI goes a long way, and Anthony Curcio would have known not to leave his tobacco-spittoon out where the cops could get it. Yeah, tobacco-spittoon, which sort of drains the bradpittian glamour right out, doesn’t it?

Craigslist said today it is implementing new measures, in partnership with state law enforcement and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), to prevent its online classifieds from being used for prostitution, child exploitation, and other illegal activity.

The measures are part of an agreement between Craigslist, NCMEC, and attorneys general of more than 40 states. The move was spearheaded by Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.

All media is now digital. Holdouts which have not yet converted are desperately trying to figure out how to make the transition happen. As of February 2009, television signals will only be broadcast digitally; a leap necessitated by the immutable laws of physics, economics and government.