SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA.- eBay Inc. announced it sold the auction house Butterfields to Bonhams. It did not disclose the financial terms of the deal. eBay will now try to focus on its core online auction business. In 1999, eBay acquired Butterfields for $260 million. But Butterfield has not been profitable, as Kruse Inc, another auction house eBay acquired. eBay spokesman Kevin Pursglove stated "Butterfields has certainly helped us in the marketplace. But for the long-term growth and future of Butterfields, we thought it would be best that it be owned by a (traditional) auction company." Geoff Iddison, Butterfields’ chief executive officer, stated that Bonhams, which is based in London, will use Butterfields to enter the American market, where they havelittle presence. Iddison stated, "The strategies of the two businesses are going in different ways. It makes more sense for Butterfields to have a more traditional partner going forward." Robert Brooks, group chairman of Bonhams, stated, "With almost 20 separate areas of collecting covered by Butterfields sales, none of which is duplicated by our existing operations in North America, our acquisition of the company gives Bonhams a great base from which to build our business."