France's auction oversight body announced Monday that it would seek to have eBay's French auction site shut down for failing to obtain a license to operate as an online auction house. The oversight body accused eBay of hiding behind the mantle of a mere broker to escape providing legal guarantees to buyers and sellers, in violation of a July 2000 French law governing both online and offline auctioneers. The body has asked the High Court in Paris to order eBay to stop auction sales in France until it obtains the proper authorization.