But all that looks to be changing thanks to eBay’s bold new program called “Managed Delivery.” According to new reporting from Bloomberg, the e-commerce giant is set on taking a more hands-on approach to fulfillment and delivery by providing “end-to-end” shipping services that cover packing and delivery all in one go. Currently, the company’s plan is to shave down delivery times to just a mere two or three days — a big step up from current delivery times, which vary depending on the chosen shipping method. One of the biggest winners in eBay’s new push, however, is actually eBay sellers. Rather than needing to worry about taking their packages to the post office and purchasing shipping and packing supplies, eBay has pledged to take care of the heavy lifting — which will give sellers more time to focus on running their online stores. As of right now, no official date has been set for the new service to debut, but trials are currently underway to test the viability of eBay’s new system. Here’s hoping it’s ready in time for the holidays! In a report by The Verge, UPS was identified as petitioning to the Federal Aviation Administration for permission to use drones for the last leg of delivery journeys. Still, the idea of multiple sets of flying drones delivering packages is just about the most futuristic thing the mind can imagine (outside of flying cars, but who knows when that’s happening anymore…) With these three entities going head to head, it might seem difficult to predict which one will come out on top. The truth, however, is that their competition with one another fuels a “delivery arms race” of sorts — which leads to better e-commerce and delivery options than we would have had otherwise. And what could be better than that?
