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Private company

eToys.com

Logo: eToys, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3

Online toy retailer

eToys.com was a retail website that sold toys via the Internet. It was established by a startup company of the same name on November 3, 1997. After an initial public offering on January 4, 1999, the company quickly shot up in value, becoming emblematic of the dot-com bubble.2 It is headquartered in United States.1 It ceased to exist in 2001.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1997Founded1
  • HeadquartersUnited States1
  • Websitewww.etoys.com
  • Legal formjoint-stock company1

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eToys.com was a retail website that sold toys via the Internet. It was established by a startup company of the same name on November 3, 1997. After an initial public offering on January 4, 1999, the company quickly shot up in value, becoming emblematic of the dot-com bubble. The company went bankrupt on April 1, 2001, and shut down soon thereafter. The etoys.com domain went through a number of changes of ownership afterwards, and has been owned by Toys "R" Us since February 2009.2

The story

eToys was launched on November 3, 1997, as an Idealab company. In 1999, eToys held an IPO. Shares were issued at $20. At the end of the first day of trading, the stock closed at $76 a share. eMarketer was once quoted as saying; "Put simply, eToys is the benchmark against which all other toy sites are measured". In 1999, the company was involved in a high-profile dispute with Swiss art site etoy. EToys attempted to seize the etoy.com domain from etoy on the grounds that it was confusingly similar to its own domain, but it relented after widespread internet outrage.

From Wikipedia’s article on EToys.com, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Timeline

  1. 2001Dissolved Dissolved1
  2. 1997Founded Founded1

Sources

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