eBay held its annual meeting last week -- a copy of the presentation is available online (PDF format). Among other things, it highlights that PayPal's "off eBay" volume grew at 50% year over year in the first quarter of 2003.

MasterCard announced a new turn-key loyalty and rewards program intended for small to medium-sized financial institutions called Preferred Rewards.

The MasterCard Preferred Rewards package offers similar competitive advantages to current customized card-user loyalty and reward programs without the large financial investment associated with development and implementation, staffing, and data processing resources. Cardholders earn points for using their cards and have options for reward choices in the three most desirable award categories: travel and entertainment, merchandise, and gift certificates. The program represents an affordable alternative to the fully-customized MasterCard rewards solutions available since 1997. "Preferred Rewards provides a comprehensive yet flexible payment platform that takes the expense and guesswork out of launching and managing a world-class payment card rewards program," said Barbara Hvasta, vice president, Loyalty Consulting and Rewards Services, MasterCard Advisors. "Our wealth of hands-on expertise is critical to providing a financial institution with everything from set-up and roll-out, to marketing support, and professionally staffed customer service capabilities."