EBay won't sell inaugural tickets

WASHINGTON -- EBay Inc. has decided it won't allow tickets to President-elect Barack Obama's swearing-in ceremony to be sold on its websites.

The company made the decision after meeting Wednesday with representatives of the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies, eBay spokeswoman Nichola Sharpe tells The Associated Press.

The head of the committee, Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, wants to prevent scalping of tickets to the historic event. Tickets are supposed to be distributed free through congressional offices, which have been overwhelmed with demands.

EBay Inc. is the parent company of listing and sales sites eBay, StubHub and Kijiji.

Early this week StubHub advertised swearing-in tickets for thousands of dollars but the postings were gone Thursday.