eBay is increasing affiliate payouts substantially on June 1, 2007. For smaller affiliates, the gains will be over 2x on new customer signups and a 25% increase in revenue share. Both the current and new affiliate fees are listed here, and I’ve pasted them below.

This is good news for startups that directly or indirectly earn revenue from eBay affiliate fees, and it may encourage other ecommerce sites to increase their own payouts as well.

eBay has not made any statement on why they are increasing the rates. Their revenues have been growing nicely year over year, although Comscore shows flat uniques and downward page views over the last twelve months. Their stock price has also been trending down. Getting new users into the service is a priority, and their affiliate network is far more efficient than standard advertising.