The online "name your own price" site for everything from airline tickets to cars - priceline.com - is planning to enter the European market within six to nine months with Ireland being considered as a base for the company's customer care centre.

Mr Bob Wisse, senior vice president for product development and planning at Priceline, said yesterday the company was seriously considering Ireland and the centre would employ 50 to 100 people.

"We are in negotiations with suppliers in connection with the expansion into Europe as well as seeking out potential investment."

The company, also examining other European countries including Belgium and Spain as possible bases, had revenues of $114 million (€106 million) in 1998.

Mr Wisse said Priceline, which will introduce an auction site to compete with online auction house e-bay next February, expected revenues to grow to more than $700 million this year and up to $1.3 billion by the end of 2000.

At a conference on European tourism and travel organised by Dublin Institute of Technology, he said: "The pace at which we expand and diversify in Europe depends on the market."

Priceline.com sells 11,000 flights and 3,500 hotel rooms a day, with an average of more than 200,000 visitors a day, of which 35,000 buy something.