Free AOL CDs become expensive art on eBay

NEWS Anybody who is plagued by free CD mail shots from ISPs may be interested to here that these items of junk mail are now selling on eBay. Touting the launch of version 8.0 of its online service, AOL has released a series of collectable CDs sporting designs by celebrities such as movie star Tom Cruise and fashion designer Donna Karan. However, the discs are now showing up on eBay - with bidding for some discs heading towards $100. Even AOL's plain discs are for sale on eBay, with one bidder offering $5.50 for a set of five sealed tins containing the program discs. One bidder who paid $150 an AOL disc designed by Karan and another one signed by actresses Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman and Julianne Moore, said he bid on the discs for his girlfriend who was interested in the "designer theme". AOL produced eight different designer CDs and printed 1,000 copies of each, a company representative said. The company distributed the collectible discs at Bloomingdale's retail store in New York on the day it launched the new version of its service. Troy Wolverton writes for News.com