LiveAuctioneers App Technologies, a division of LiveAuctioneers LLC, has launched the world’s first app (application program) for real-time bidding through Apple-brand mobile devices.
The downloadable app is compatible with both Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch series, and interfaces with sales conducted by the nearly 900 auction houses worldwide who use LiveAuctioneers.com for their Internet live bidding.
“This is one of the most exciting developments in the history of our company,” said LiveAuctioneers CEO Julian R. Ellison. “In July we took an initial step in this direction by introducing an iPhone app that enabled users to browse our clients’ catalogs and leave absentee bids. Our first-generation app was the first of its kind within the auction industry to connect smart phone users with sales at hundreds of auction houses worldwide. Now we’ve taken it to the next level with an enhanced functionality that allows iPhone and iPod Touch users to bid and interact, in real time, in any auction facilitated by LiveAuctioneers’ bidding platform.”
The LiveAuctioneers live-bidding iPhone app is a free download available from Apple’s App Store. Those who already have the original version of LiveAuctioneers’ app on their iPhone or iPod Touch also can upgrade directly from their devices through the App Store. The technology is compatible with iPhone or iPod Touch software version 3.0 or later.
To bid in real time via iPhone using LiveAuctioneers’ new app, the user simply registers online with the auction house of choice, no differently than if they were registering through their PC or Mac. Upon approval from the auction house, the user is authorized to bid through their iPhone/iPod Touch as the auction is taking place. The app isn’t just for bidders, however. Anyone can use the app to view auctions in progress.
Julian Ellison stressed that bidders will always be able to participate in LiveAuctioneers-supported auctions conventionally through their PCs or Macs, but added: “There’s no denying that we are an increasingly mobile society that conducts more and more of its business through mobile phones and PDAs. When we first saw the launch of online bidding, which was back in the early days of eBay Live Auctions, people were able to bid against the auction floor through their laptops. Now they don’t even need their laptops. They can be anywhere at all, as long as they have access to their iPhone or iPod Touch. This is the next big step forward for Internet live bidding and will give many more people instant access to auctions worldwide.”
View the LiveAuctioneers iPhone app at http://www.liveauctioneers.com/iphoneapp