eBay and craigslist, sitting in a tree

eBay Acquires Minority Interest in craigslist

Craig's take on it seems to be that it's pretty benign.

I'd give him the benefit of the doubt. This sounds big. Let's keep an eye on this.

Update: Commenters on Craig's blog seem to be wavering between hopeful worry and cries of "sell out." My sense is that Craig's idea of checking his own power is deeply correct, but that perhaps the consequences of trusting the individual involved (who sold his "equity stake" to eBay) weren't fully foreseen when the original plan was executed. Again, I'd say this bears watching.

Disclosure: Craig Newmark wrote the foreword for this book and I interviewed him a number of times while writing my analysis of the living web.