STOCKS TO WATCH: eBay, Intraware and 360networks

The online auctioneer will be worth watching Monday after rumors surfaced this weekend that it was in talks to buy uBid, an online business-to-consumer auctioneer.

Barron's reported in its Dec. 4 edition that the online auction giant was interested in buying the business-to consumer auction company.

The eBay source told Reuters that eBay has ``not been in any discussion to buy uBid,'' nor were they looking at uBid ``in any shape or form.'' An eBay spokesman declined to comment on the report.

According to Barron's, uBid Chief Executive Greg Jones recently met with representatives of San Jose, Calif.-based eBay and with Benchmark Capital, an early backer of eBay that remains a significant stockholder.

uBid's current 1.5 registered users would complement eBay's consumer-to-consumer business, whose core business is reaching a plateau, Barron's said.

uBid plans to launch a consumer-to-consumer auctions site next week to compete with eBay, the newspaper said. The new endeavor, Auction Exchange, will differ from eBay in that consumers will be required to secure their purchases by using a credit card.

eBay shares picked up 44 cents to finish at $34.75 Friday.

Intraware shares will be active Monday after the Internet software developer said it would slash 47 percent of its headcount in a cost-cutting move.

Intraware said it expects to take an unspecified restructuring charge in the current quarter to account for severance costs, expenses associated with discontinued operations and other charges.

Officials said it plans to cut costs and streamline operations as well as reduce its workforce to around 200 employees from 380 at the end of November.

It will also consolidate its three San Francisco Bay Area offices into two and reduce the number of outside sales offices from eleven to seven.

Intraware shares closed off 19 cents to $2.81 ahead of the news.

360networks will see heavy action after it warned that its fiscal 2001 sales will come in below analysts' estimates mainly because its customers are signing more long-term contracts.

Company officials said it expects 2001 revenue of $650 million to $700 million. Mark Grotevant, an analyst at Credit Suisse First Boston, expected revenue of more than $900 million, according to a research report.

360networks gave its outlook at a conference with analysts in Vancouver.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and stock-based compensation, will be $110 million to $160 million in 2001, 360networks said. That's about half the $300 million to $350 million expected by Grotevant.

CFO Larry Olsen said 360networks is getting more orders than it expected. Customers, such as Deutsche Telekom AG and Telus, are signing long-term leases.

"When we first put the earlier (guidance) model together, we thought we would see more sales," Olsen said. "It's just that rather than making sales outright more people are (signing leases)."

360networks said it expects to take in $3.1 billion to $3.3 billion of up-front cash payments in 2001, about 50 percent more than analysts' forecasts. Accounting rules dictate that those payments must be booked over the life of the contracts.

The stock finished up 69 cents to $11.06 Friday.

Reuters contributed to this report.>